See You On the Other Side
by Morie
Summary: Bella had wanted to become a vampire, but not like this. Not after Edward left, and definitely not by another vampire. It was her own plan, though, and she needed to follow it through. A different plot to New Moon, no Jacob, lemons & language.
1. Preface

_A/N: Hey everyone. This fic is set right after Edward and the rest of the Cullens leave Forks in the beginning New Moon, but it takes to a whole different direction. No Jacob, no wolves, no whiny Bella._

_This is my first vampire fanfic, so it would mean a lot to me if you review the story and help me know what I'm doing right – or wrong. Constructive criticism encouraged, that is ;) thank you for reading, and please enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything and everything that's Twilight._

* * *

**Preface.**

I was cold. So goddamn cold.

And I was pretty sure I couldn't feel my arms and legs, since they were bound so hard to the chair. How does a person know if he can feel his own organs, anyway? I knew I could move them, but it felt like they weren't mine.

I had already given up making any kind of noise. I had no idea where he took me, but I was sure by now that nobody would be able hear me. And it was definitely, definitely somewhere cold.

I wanted to cry, I wanted to mourn, but I couldn't. I couldn't shed one much needed tear until I was out of danger. All I could really do right now was try to survive.

I tried to think how the hell I managed to get myself in this situation, and the only answer that came to mind was, _you fell in love with a freaking vampire, that's how_. And an infuriating one, too. He left, and now I was stuck here because of him. If I ever saw him again after this, he would get his ass kicked, right before I'd kiss the hell out of him.

But that would probably never happen. I could already tell my life was getting shorter by the minute. He would kill me soon, when he sees I am no use to him. I hoped it would at least happen before my toes fall off, from the cold.

_To hell with this_, I thought. Women in the 21st century weren't supposed to wait around for some _man_ to rescue them, right? I could rescue myself. I was smart. Terrible at math, but smart. _Scared shitless_, but still smart.

It took me the rest of that night to come up with my plan.

If Mr. Vampire here accepted my offer, I'd be out of here in three days exactly. All I had to do was make it believable.

I could see the sky start to clear outside though the small window at the top of the wall. In fact, the clear skies of the breaking day were _all_ I could see through that window.

And the only thing I knew for sure was that – whether he accepted my deal or not – by the end of today, I would be dead.


	2. Bitten

_A/N: Hey hey. Okay, I am aware that not many people are reading this story so far, but I'm thankful for those of you who do! I hope you like where I'm going with the storyline, and just so you know, there are quite a few surprises ahead._

_Please take the time to review if you can, this is my first vampire story and it would really help me a lot. Thanks!_

_Special thanks to: **Janna**, Sherry80, **Jerz babe**, and kisbydog._

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight._

* * *

**Chapter 1: It Started With a Bite.**

It all started when they left Forks.

I could say that I never saw it coming, but that would be a lie. After Jasper accidently attacked me on my birthday, I could tell that Edward was drifting away from me, little by little. He would alternate from acting completely normal to acting strange in seconds, and the time he spent with me usually involved my dad, Charlie, somehow.

One thing I could never see coming was the intensity of the pain, sharp like multiple knives going through my body, that began the moment he told me he was leaving.

He said he didn't want me. And he actually thought I would buy that. It was no coincidence that he left just days after his vampire brother tried to drink my blood. He couldn't be with me, because I was human. Human, and much too fragile.

And now, the pain had drained me until all that was left was numbness, a void that allowed me only to stare blankly while mechanically going about my day. This drove Charlie crazy. So crazy, he actually told my mother, Renee, to come to Forks.

This was very unusual. My parents were divorced, my mother was remarried, and they pretty much led their lives separately. But it would definitely be the right remedy for my condition, if it weren't for the visitation we received shortly after she came.

I had just woken up, trying my might not to scream despite my nightmares. If I woke up screaming one more time, my parents would probably have me institutionalized.

I buried my face in my hands for a moment before pulling my hair back and out of my face. I sat up.

The entire house was silent, which made sense, since my clock read 3:12am.

Still crazed by my latest nightmare, I decided to check up on my parents (or on second thought just my mom, since I could hear Charlie snoring away), and a glass of water would probably not be a bad idea either, I thought.

I went downstairs slowly, with the grace of an elephant in a china store, and dragged my tired feet all the way to the kitchen.

I took one of the clean glasses from the cupboard and poured myself some water in it. The first sip already managed to calm me down. Yes, girls all around the world should know that in case your vampire boyfriend dumps you and you're having nightmares, a drink of water should perk you right up.

Then I went to check on my mom.

You know that feeling, when you're walking around your house at night, and you've seen enough cheesy horror movies to make yourself believe that someone's there, and you start looking around suspiciously as if you're one of those bad actresses?

That happened to me all the time.

But this time was different.

I didn't imagine anyone hiding behind the curtains, or looked around suspiciously, or hear any creaks and cracks and wind knocking on the window. Everything was quiet, and maybe that should've been my warning sign.

That and the fact that the guest room's door was slightly ajar. Renee usually slept with her door closed shut, being a light sleeper. And still, I pushed the door completely open, unwary.

At first I thought it was another one of my bad dreams. I kept sleeping and only _thought_ I had woken up, that's all.

That's why I moved forward without thinking, until my knees hit the bed and my body stopped above my mother's. Only when my hand mindlessly touched her soaked pajama shirt and I looked at my now strained with blood fingers, I realized I wasn't dreaming.

In no dream could the blood look this real, _smell_ this real, of rusty iron. Still in shock, I gathered the courage to look at her face. The moment I did, I was sorry for it. The terrified look on her face, and the biting marks everywhere; her neck, her shoulders, her hands. Biting marks, and blood, everywhere.

_No_, I thought as the smell hit me with all its force, making me nauseated.

Once I snapped out of the utter astonishment I was in and started to fully panic, I gasped, and the glass dropped from my hand. I could only vaguely hear it smash onto the floor, because my throat was getting ready to scream, _really_ scream.

But as soon as the sound left my lips, I felt a freezing cold hand over my mouth, and another cold hand closing around me from behind, and pulling me roughly out of the room, at inhuman speed.

I tried to struggle, but it was no use. It was as if I would be trying to fight Edward or Emmett.

"Hush now," an unrecognizable male voice whispered as we stood in the kitchen.

I relaxed immediately. He didn't want my screams to wake up Charlie, and neither did I. If this was how I was going to die, I wanted him to have a chance to live. Maybe the vampire would be full after he drained me, and spared Charlie.

"Good girl," he added with a hint of surprise in his voice, like he expected me to be feistier somehow. As a reward, he let go of my mouth.

The house was still completely silent. I almost sighed out in relief, before I heard the sound of a cocking gun.

_Charlie's shotgun._

"Let her go _now_," he yelled in a threatening voice, as he entered the kitchen with his gun ready to fire.

"Charlie, _no_!" I yelled, knowing a gun would be of no use against the vampire.

But I was too late.

In the blink of an eye, the vampire moved forward, disarmed Charlie from his gun, and snapped his neck, smiling. The cracking sound was gut wrenching.

I knew I was screaming, but I couldn't hear myself. I could barely register being dragged out of there through the thick snow outside. The only thing I was capable of was repeating the word _no_ in my head over and over, refusing to believe this strange reality. My parents had been… _killed_. Killed by a thirsty nomad passing through Forks. I supposed he had taken me as a snack for later. My death was coming soon.

The next time I woke up, I was tied to a chair in what looked like an old deserted house, wrapped in a long jacket that wasn't mine, and didn't help in vanishing the cold at all.

"Glad you decided to finally join me," a voice spoke. The same voice of the monster who took away what was left of my life.

I couldn't figure out how long it's been since, but by the light outside, I figured it must be the day after.

_The day after my parents' death_.

He stepped out of the shadows, until I could see him. He was tall, dark haired and unnaturally pale skinned. He looked like he was in his late 20's or early 30's, and probably handsome to those whose parents he didn't murder. The unsurprising red color of his irises looked like they were burning in the darkness.

I realized my breathing was rapid now. I didn't speak.

"I'm sorry," he laughed coldly as he approached towards me. "I forget my manners. My name is Nathaniel. And you are…"

I said nothing.

"That's not very courteous of you, Miss Bella," he said.

_How the hell does he know me name?_

He smiled as he saw the confusion in my eyes. There was something about his smile that gave me the creeps.

"What's that?" he said, pretending I was talking back to him. "You're wondering where I might know you from? Well, that's simple, my dear Bella.

"You see, your precious boyfriend, _Edward_," the name rolled on his lips with much hatred. "Killed someone very important to me. Who's that, you ask?"

He kneeled in front of me, still smiling that awful smile.

"You might've known him as James. I knew him as my brother. And your stupid little teenaged vampire ripped him apart," he said, almost whispering.

His face were inches from mine, his cold breath making me sick.

"How do I know? Is that your next question?" he said. "Well, allow me to clarify. James had a mate. Her name is Victoria – or should I say _was_ Victoria. She told me _all_ about it. How my brother was murdered because of one little insignificant human."

_You murdered my parents_, I thought.

"Bella, Bella, Bella. It was all about you, wasn't it?" he said, and then got up again, to my relief, and started pacing.

"Of course, I had to kill her. It was her job, as his mate, to protect him. And did she do that? No! Stupid bitch ran away," he said agitatedly, talking with his hands. "Actually, I never really liked her, when I think about it," he added.

"Anyway," he turned to me again with that heinous smile. "This brings us here. And we're going to stay here, until your beloved Edward comes to save you. And then… well. I don't need to tell you what happens next, do I?"

At that moment, I wished he would never come. I'd rather die alone than be the reason Edward dies, and then die as well.

_Thank god he's probably never coming back_.

I just wondered if this Nathaniel guy would just give up once he realized that Edward isn't coming to my rescue. Something told me, no.

"I know what you're thinking, very Lois and Clark, isn't it? You know. Help, Superman," he said, laughing at his own stupid joke. "Gotta love human television."

I still remained silent, though I realized I was shaking of cold, and of fear. Fear for my life, fear for Edward's.

"Well, aren't you a pleasant conversationalist," he said sarcastically. "Are you punishing me for killing your parents by giving me the silent treatment?" he smirked.

I'm pretty sure at that point, I growled at him.

"Aw, don't be like that. Truth is, I didn't expect more people to be in the house. I sometimes seem to forget that humans live together in groups. And your mother was quite delectable."

I was breathing frantically. I never felt more afraid in my life than in the hands of this lunatic and with, seemingly, no way out. My parents were gone, _gone_, and I couldn't acknowledge it yet, because of the fear I might be joining them soon.

"I can see I'm interrupting your thinking process," he said, as if he were a complete gentleman. "I'll leave you to it, and hopefully, next time we talk you'll be more chatty."

And with that, he disappeared into the darkness, or perhaps into another room, I couldn't tell.

The following days went by like a blur.

He fed me, gave me water through a straw, and even gave me bathroom breaks in a tiny, filthy bathroom, with apparently no exit. Every time he was gone, I screamed at the top of my lungs for help, trying to get someone to hear me. No one ever did.

When he _was_ there, he kept speaking to me, although I wouldn't answer, telling me of how silly humans were, how easy they were to hunt. As he sat on a chair right in front of me, he told me about his victims and conquests, the people who served as his _food_.

"Of course, I haven't eaten since your mother, which was ten days ago," he said, as he always told me how many days it had been. How… courteous. And then he laid his eyes on me, scanning my face.

"Maybe," he started, and then smiled slowly. "Oh, no. You're far too useful to me alive right now. And far too lovely to kill, I should say," he said in a low voice, his fingers stroking my cheek.

I winced, moving my face away from his cold, dead hands.

"I'm sorry," he laughed. "Of course you'd move away. You must be so cold. Silly me, I always forget about you humans."

He got up and removed his own coat, and laid it on top of my shoulders, as if we were on some kind of old fashioned date.

"There we go," he said with a smile. "All set."

During the next few days, I could see that he was getting impatient. He kept pacing in front of me, telling me how excited he was for the moment that his brother's killer finally walked into his trap. He contemplated whether to kill me first and make him watch, or kill him first and then savor me slowly.

"Or maybe I should kill him, and keep you all to myself," he said, his creepy-ass smile slowly widening.

I guess his words were partly the inspiration to my plan. The deal I would offer him.

If Mr. Vampire here accepted my offer, I'd be out of here in three days exactly. All I had to do was make it believable.

I could see the sky start to clear outside though the small window at the top of the wall. In fact, the clear skies of the breaking day were _all_ I could see through that window.

And the only thing I knew for sure was that – whether he accepted my deal or not – by the end of today, I would be dead.

After all, he hadn't eaten anyone in two whole weeks now, and his eyes were so dark they were nearly black.

"Good morning, my Bella," he said cheerfully as he walked in, removing his coat and hanging it on the door.

_If I was indeed yours, I would probably shoot myself in the head._

I hoped his good mood would be beneficial to me and my plan.

"Good morning," I answered back, gaining a surprised and almost delighted look from him.

"I see someone finally decided to talk," he said, sitting down in his usual place.

"I did," I said, trying to figure out how to make my proposition to him. I only had one shot to make it sound appealing to him.

"You make me happy," he said. "I suppose I can ask you now, how are you?"

I sighed and mustered up a smile for my kidnapper, hoping he was gullible.

"I could have been better, without all these ropes. And frankly, I'm still cold."

"Now, now, Bella. You know you're supposed to stay here until Edward shows up," he said, still smiling. "But I will get you another coat, or maybe a space heater. I do want you to be comfortable in the meantime."

"No one is coming, Nathaniel," I said, purposely using his name. "Edward left me. He left me two weeks before you came here."

"Silly Bella. I'm sure he'll cut his vacation short to save his dear girlfriend."

"He's not on… vacation," I shook my head. "He _left_ me. Dumped me. He doesn't want me anymore. I mean nothing to that bastard," I said, knowing it would turn his full attention to what I was saying.

I had to make it seem like I hated Edward.

"My, my. I thought he was the love of your life," he said, scrutinizing me.

"He was. Before he told me I was the love of _his_ life, and then tossed me aside to travel the world or something," I said. "He said he was _easily bored_," I said with fake disgust.

"Did he?" he asked, still looking suspicious.

I laughed humorlessly. "I guess he got tired of waiting for me to put out," I added, and shook my head. "God, I could kill him."

He sighed. "That explains why he didn't show up for two fucking weeks. Well then… I guess this means you're not useful to me anymore. At least not when it comes to Edward Cullen," he winked.

"Actually," I said. "I have a proposition for you."

He laughed. "You are quite extraordinary, my darling," he said. "Very bold. And what is your proposition, if I might ask?"

I breathed in deeply, preparing myself. "I want to help you kill Edward."

He barked a laugh. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," I said, raising my eyebrow.

"You want to help me kill your beloved vampire?"

"The vampire who left me, got my parents killed and got me into this mess, after promising me a lifetime of happiness," I corrected him.

"And how exactly can _you_ help _me_ kill someone?" he said, still seemingly amused.

"I could, if you changed me," I said.

He looked at me warily for a long moment. "Go on."

"As a vampire, I could help you hunt him down. I know all the places where he wanted to travel, where he might be. And most importantly, I can help you destroy him. Newborns are known for their exceptional physical strength, aren't they?"

"You have certainly done your homework," he nodded. "But how will I know you won't turn on me, as soon as I change you? I did kill your parents."

"Because we have a similar interest. After Edward is dead, each of us goes our own way, of course. But for now, I guess my enemy's enemy is my friend," I said in the most convincing manner I could.

I hoped to god I was a good enough actress, because this time, my life depended on it.

"Well put," he said.

He got up from his chair, and seemed to be weighing the matters, while doing his favorite thing to do – pacing back and forth. Finally he halted to a stop.

"Alright, my dear," he said, eyeing me from head to toe. "I agree to your offer, mainly because this doesn't seem to be working, and I'm getting tired of feeding you. Might I say, you would make for one astonishing vampire."

I pretended to smile. "Good. So when do we do this?"

I had wanted to become a vampire. I had told that to Edward before, although he showed no interest in changing me. I'd wanted to become a vampire, so I could be with Edward. So he wouldn't have to constantly worry about me, and so I wouldn't be a liability. And mostly, because I wanted to be with him forever, and not grow old, wither and die, while he stayed forever seventeen.

But I never imagined I'd be changed by another vampire, definitely not one who wasn't a Cullen, and most definitely not one who murdered my parents.

But I needed to follow my plan.

"My, are you eager," he laughed. "I have to eat, first. Otherwise, I might end up draining you, instead. That would be a pity."

I wanted to stop him, before he could go outside and kill some innocent bystander, or worse – another person I knew. But I guess the survival instinct is even stronger than the conscience sometimes.

"I'll be waiting," I said, choosing to ignore the last part of his sentence, and my fears.

He came back the next day, and his eyes were an almost fiery shade of red.

He closed the door behind him, hung his coat, and smiled at me as he approached.

"Hello, my lovely Bella. How are you today?"

"Impatient," I admitted, and he laughed.

"Alright, alright. I assume you know how this works," he said.

"You bite me. There's three days of excruciating pain. Then I'm a vampire and we can go get our revenge," I said nervously.

"Couldn't have said it better myself," he said, and then looked around. "Maybe you should lie down on the floor for this."

I did as he said, and watched as he kneeled before me.

He leaned over me, his eyes investigating my body as he did. I felt like a virgin who was waiting to be deflowered by her boyfriend, only this was about the farthest thing I had to a boyfriend. And then it occurred to me, that I would die a virgin.

"Any last wishes?" he said with a smirk.

_Please let this plan work_.

"Could you bite me somewhere else? Not my neck?" I asked.

"It wouldn't be as effective," he said.

I nodded, feeling my heartbeat racing, and knowing it would be the last time that I would.

With that, he neared his face to mine, his sickening breath over me. I was fucking terrified.

"See you soon, my dear," he said.

A second later, his teeth were sunk deep into the vein of my neck, and all of the fear faded. All I could feel was fire spreading, inch by inch and limb by limb.

It was coursing through my body, as if eating me away from the inside, making me wish I was dead, and killing me at the same time. I felt as if every single cell of my body was burning in the scorching flame, until it was nothing but hard coal, that would later be turned into marble.

I alternated between consciousness and unconsciousness for what seemed like a forever of pain. Even when I was out cold, I was still aware of the pain somehow. It was unlike anything I'd ever experienced, despite my tendency of getting hit by unmoving objects on a daily basis.

It was more than excruciating. It was a mind-numbing, life extracting, make you scream until your lungs collapse kind of pain.

Suddenly, I woke up.

I wasn't feeling any pain anymore. I wasn't cold, either.

I felt… different.

Sharper. More aware. Strong. Different.

As a test, I hit my fist on the floor beside me, feeling it crumble against my less than hard blow. I looked at my hands in shock.

I wanted to try getting up, wondering if I would be as fast as Edward was, but then I noticed the character of the man I smelt from all across the room. He was making his way towards me slowly.

He offered me his hand to help me up, and with a smile he said, "Welcome, my Bella."


	3. Running

_A/N: Hello hello! And how are we all today? I present to you, another chapter of the story, in lightening speed and faster than Superman himself. Hope y'all will find it to your liking, and if not, feel free to say so!_

_Special thanks with strawberries in mascarpone cheese to: Kisbydog, __**Janna**__, bloftus, and Sherry80._

_*Thanks heavens for the most loyal readers a writer could have*. Okay, babbling ending now. Have fun!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight._

* * *

**Chapter 2: Running.**

_Bella's POV_:

"Good work, Bella," Nathaniel said as we both haltered to a stop somewhere in the woods. Apparently, we were on Mercer Island, just a ferry away from Seattle. "If I hadn't known better, I would've thought you had a gift of fantastic speed," he said, and placed a finger under my chin, before I moved away from him. I was pretending to be friendly to him, not pretending to be _friendly_ to him.

"You mean, a gift-gift? A talent?" I asked curiously as he sat down on the ground, sighing. I wanted to know if he meant something like Edward's ability, or Alice's.

"Yes, that is what I meant," he said as if reading my mind, looking forward.

"Do you know any vampires with such… gifts?" I asked, crossing my arms against my chest. He had already told me that he knew about Edward's ability to read minds, but I was curious about other vampires, ones I didn't know.

He laughed humorlessly, like he did often. "Several," was his only answer.

We had been practicing running for a couple of days now, Nathaniel more than happy to teach me how to maneuver the special traits that came with being a vampire. Inhuman speed. Inhuman strength. Inhuman concentration. Inhuman thirst – for humans. It was powerful, yes, but not something I couldn't conquer. It was actually easier than I'd expected.

"How come I'm not…" I tried thinking of ways to finish the sentence.

"Killing people with insane craving for their blood?" he asked, now looking at me. I nodded. "You're still full of your delectable human blood. You don't need to feed yet. But I'd be glad to teach you nonetheless, if you'd like."

He'd been going on and on about how delicious my blood was, ever since he transformed me. And I was doing all I could to make him think we were partners now, which included having to fake taking pleasure in his company. This made me especially cranky, which sometimes made me say cranky things – but he seemed to enjoy it.

"No, thank you," I said grimly. "_When_ I absolutely need to hunt, I'll manage to hunt down some kind of animal."

"Veganism? Where _the fuck_ is the fun in that?" he asked with a dark smirk.

"Don't be confused, _Nathaniel_. Just because I'm willing to kill for my revenge, doesn't mean I'm ready to murder the innocent for food, like you do," I said, sitting myself own on the ground as well, far away from him.

"My dear Bella – if you're not ready to kill people now, where do you get the confidence that you'll be able to kill when it matters the most?" he asked.

I pursed my lips. "Because after what he did to me… I want that son of a bitch dead – and this time _really_ dead," I said, so convincingly that I even managed to scare myself.

He whistled, and smiled again. "I guess the old saying is correct. Hell hath no fury like a woman abandoned by her vampire," he said, and I was pleased that he seemed to have swallowed my bait.

We were silent for a few minutes longer, before he spoke again.

"Alright. I think you're ready," he said, making my head perk up in attention faster than I could a few days earlier. "Now come on, my little tracking device. You said you knew where our target might be. Where do we start?"

I pretended to be straining my brain, when in fact I had already come up with an answer for that, the day earlier. "I guess we should start in Alaska. Denali, to be exact."

"Why there?" he interrogated.

"Are you familiar with the Denali coven?"

"Vaguely," he answered.

"Edward is… _friends_, with one of the sisters. Tanya," I said, faking pure disgust. Edward had told me that on those first days, when he couldn't bear being next to me without trying to kill me, he fled to Denali, to see Tanya, who was an old friend. He told me that Tanya had tried to make a move on him in the past, and that he turned her down like a gentleman, and she got the point.

"And you think he might be with this… _Tanya_?" he raised an eyebrow.

"I saw the look in his eyes when he mentioned her. And all those times he would strangely disappear for a few days? I know they were meeting behind my back. Him and his whore," I muttered the complete lie. I had no idea where the hell any of that came from – I wasn't even the kind of person to regularly swear, but I was putting my best acting face on, for Edward and mine's sake.

He laughed heartily. "I must say I am enjoying your darker sides."

_I bet you are_.

I didn't respond. I couldn't wrap my mind around this creature. Although I was pretty positive that he was either a psychopath, or a sociopath. Probably both. What was the difference, again? I wondered if he was the same as a human, cruel and indifferent in the same package.

"We could kill her as well, if you'd like," he added.

"No!" I said immediately, and he narrowed his eyes in response. "If Edward isn't there, I don't want him to hear about it and be prepared for us," I hurried to correct myself. "I want him to be unsuspecting. He needs to think I'm on his side."

He stayed silent for the longest moment, making me wonder if he had bought my act. "Brilliant idea," he finally said. "He suspects nothing, until we rip him apart, piece by piece," he laughed.

I tried to hide my sudden shuddering. "Yes," I said confidently. "Which is why we need to be nothing but pleasant to his… mistress. At least until we find him and get him alone."

"Good. It seems you have thought of all the details, so I don't have to bother myself with the more tedious aspects of retaliation," he said. "Let us go."

_God forbid you should bother yourself with the tedious parts of killing my boyfriend, you freaking lunatic_.

It took us a few days to get to Alaska. If anyone ever told me I would run for days without getting tired – or injured, for that matter – I would probably laugh in his face, while holding onto my stomach, until I would fall down on the floor laughing, and injure myself.

We ran through the thick snow, and I never slipped once. I never even felt cold. At times, I got the feeling as if I was cold, like I wanted to cover myself up. They say when a person loses his hand, or his leg, he can still feel it as though it was still there in reality. I guess my humanity was my Phantom Limb now.

We traveled out of the sight of the civilians, so we wouldn't have to account for exceptionally red eyes. I don't think anyone would believe it was just a really bad infection.

At some point, the lunatic broke into a department store at night, and got us two pairs of sunglasses, and some clothes to change, which was probably a good idea – since I was still in my PJ's. And the perv wanted to look while I was changing, as if that was going to happen. Thank god I managed to regain some control in this situation, which made it much less of a hostage situation.

We finally saw the Denali, just as we came out of the thick forest. There was a long plain surface of snow on the way to the large house, and he slowed down to a slower pace, like a human's. I did the same. I assumed that he didn't want to risk them panicking when they see us come running.

I hoped to god Edward wasn't there.

* * *

_Alice's POV_:

Things have been… strange.

Ever since my idiot of a brother, Edward, decided we should all just up and leave Forks, life have been strange. And if he had bothered to warn us that a week after we leave he was going to go on his own and "think", we would probably just stay in Forks and say we shipped him off to military school or something.

Jasper didn't mean to attack Bella on her birthday. It's his gift. It makes him feel his own thirst for blood, and everyone else's, at the same time – only making it all the more powerful, harder to resist. He was still agonizing with guilt, but now he was also feeling guilty because Edward and Bella were apart.

And it didn't help that while he was here, Edward was being mean to everybody, constantly snapping at us. How annoying it was. He actually told me to stop drinking rabbit blood before he would tape my pixie mouth shut. Was he suggesting that I was talking too much? Yes. Was he right? Perhaps. Was he doing it nicely? Definitely. Not.

But the worst thing was, I'd never seen Edward this torn before. He was taking the breakup really hard, for someone who initiated it. It actually scared me – not only seeing him walk around without purpose, with a lifeless expression (well, more lifeless than the usual). I was also getting visions of him.

He kept changing his mind about what he was going to do. Some of the visions I saw were of him going back to Forks, which was probably the right thing to do, but some of those visions included not-so-happy endings – ones that worried me. At least he would always take it back. And I knew that as long as Bella existed, he would never act on his impulses to try and take his own death.

Since he'd left us, though, I wasn't able to see what his exact intentions were.

I could see where he was – which right now was Denali, Alaska, for some reason, and getting ready to leave. And I could see where he was headed, but I couldn't see _why_, and it drove me crazy. What the hell was up with my brooding brother?

Bella was just as bad, of course. She was sinking into depression, I could see it. That is, I _was_ able to see it, until two weeks ago. At first I thought I couldn't see anything because there was no news, but two weeks were way too long to see nothing involving Bella.

Well, anyway. As the only one of my siblings who was actually able and willing to socialize with the humans of Forks, I wisely decided to leave myself an open channel of information. Just so I could keep an eye on what was going in Forks – especially in cases like these. Holes in my vision. It's happened before. It was far from flawless, after all.

So I picked up the phone and called my "open channel". It just so happened to be the biggest gossip in Forks high, and one of Bella's friends, Jessica. It wasn't long before she answered, which didn't surprise me since she was constantly glued to her phone. Not that I wasn't. Plus, I had an extra telepathic phone in my head.

"Hello?" she answered, sounding strange.

"Hey Jess," I said. "How've you been?"

"Oh, Alice," she said, and then paused. Next, I heard a strangled sob from the other side of the phone.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" I asked. I just hoped to God that Mike didn't dump her, cause I'd be hearing about it for the next few hours if he did.

"I'm fine. It's… It's… _Bella_," she said through her sobbing, and my heart sank. On second thought, I would had rather it to be about Mike. "I'm so… sorry I didn't call to tell you. I know you asked me to let you know if something happened. But it was just so awful, I…"

"Jess, calm down," I said, ordering myself to stay calm, too. I sat down on my unnecessary bed and inhaled deeply. "Tell me what happened."

_Oh, damn it. Why can't I see anything related to Bella?_

"Someone…" she took a deep sulky breath, "someone broke into her house. And he…" she started crying hysterically again, "killed her parents. Her mom was there. He killed them both really brutally. And the worst… thing is, nobody knows what he did with…" she said, but couldn't finish the sentence.

_Oh my god. No, it's not possible. I would've seen it. I would've seen Victoria or Laurent, I would've seen it._

_Would you?_

"Bella's… gone?" I asked silently.

It took her a minute to stop crying and get herself together. "They looked for her at first, but since it's been two weeks and they couldn't find her anywhere, they just gave up. They said she 'most likely to have not survived'. Like, what the hell is that supposed to mean, right?" she said with a shaky voice.

"Oh my god," I whispered, and my mind was suddenly working overtime. "I'll, I'll talk to you later," I said and hung up, without waiting an answer.

This couldn't be. Bella could not be dead. She had to be somewhere, just somewhere out of their reach. And her parents… well, her parents were probably identified by the police. Poor Charlie and Renee.

_Killed brutally._

There was more than one way to be killed brutally, but I knew at least one way that made sense, concerning my kind. Could I really take it for a coincidence and believe that Bella's parents were killed _brutally_ by a human, just a short while after she was involved in the death of a vampire? After the only protection she had, left?

As for Bella herself… I wasn't ready, or willing, to accept that she was dead. Just because she wasn't found by the police, it doesn't mean she can't be found by a vampire. By _me_. Someone had taken her somewhere, and I had to find out where before it was too late.

I decided to keep this to myself in the meantime, and drive from Seattle to Forks alone, to do a little sleuthing.

I went to the downstairs floor of our new house, knowing Jasper and Emmett would be in the living room, playing some sort of video game. If Jasper realized something was wrong, he wouldn't let me go.

_Okay. Think happy thoughts. Anything but Bella. Think about Gucci. Better yet. Think about Pucci._

It only did the trick when I thought about my family. This one, the real one.

I took a deep breath and took the last few steps down, smiling brightly to the boys. I might as well have been thinking about mass murders and the holocaust, because they were paying zero attention to me, so caught up in the game. I frowned.

_Boys_.

I grabbed my keys quickly, and went outside and into my loyal Audi TT.

It took me less than two hours to get to Forks, since I decided to drive like Edward usually does – like a maniac. This was important. I had a lost sister-in-law to save, who was most definitely still walking this earth. I could feel it.

Once I reached the small, familiar house, I parked the car and went outside.

I hesitated. I thought I had picked up a recognizable scent besides Bella's.

She was definitely taken somewhere, because her smell was still all over the driveway, but her parents' wasn't. I decided to go inside, even though I had to do a little breaking and entering.

Dry blood. One spot in the kitchen, like a person hitting the floor – by the smell of it, it was Charlie. That's where I picked up that scent again, one that tickled my brain and made me want to remember something I couldn't. I followed it to one of the rooms. More dry blood. The bed looked like it had been colored in deep red.

I approached it, and took another deep breath, straining to recognize…

_Oh no,_ I thought in horror. _Not again. Please, not again_.

I would have collapsed on the floor, if it wasn't for my every instinct screaming at me to get the hell out of that house. Get away.

At speed only my own kind could render, I ran out of the house and got in my car, squeezing the gas paddle to the max. Thank god for the split-screen option our brains had, or I would've undoubtedly caused an accident.

This couldn't be.

_It _has _to be. You smelled it._

I knew it would happen eventually. I knew that at some point, no matter how much I ran away from my past, it would catch up to me. _He_ would catch up to me.

I felt a cold, petrifying chill running down my spine as I steered the car with effort, obviously unnerved by the thought.

This was it. Bella had been taken by the only vampire to ever _really_ make my skin and flesh crawl.

I was a coward. I could not even try to follow the trail of Bella's scent to try and find out where he had taken her. I needed my family for this – but first they needed to hear the truth. The _whole_ truth.

I shivered.

* * *

_Edward's POV_:

I ran alone, knowing it would take me a while to get to my destination. But since I wasn't in any particular hurry, I let myself take breaks. Not that I needed to rest – I needed something else entirely. I would get a hotel room tonight, so I can do a little more wallowing. Yes, that's how pathetic I was. I needed to wallow in self pity, let out some of the pain, so I could somehow go on living a life without Bella.

At least, for now.

Because every day it got a little bit worse. Every day, I would think of another part of Bella that I _had_ to live without but _couldn't_, and I would think of another excuse why I definitely _should_ go back to Forks.

I had to leave after what happened. How could I had stayed when I knew my very presence was endangering Bella? I knew this would happen eventually, after she almost got killed in the James incident. And it only went downhill from there, when one of my own family members attacked her because of a fucking paper cut.

I'd left Denali a couple of days ago, after Tanya explained to me where I needed to go.

I had to be smart about it, though, and I'd already figured out a way around Alice's visions; I just made my decisions very carefully, only deciding on the place I was headed, the route I was taking, but by no means was I thinking of the final objective. If Alice knew, they would just get in the way.

My family. The Cullens. I'd grown to love each of them – even Rosalie, despite the fact that she was an absolute bitch – but I had to say goodbye now. First, because I realized I couldn't be in their lives without depressing them with my sorry brooding ass. And now, because I had a newfound goal, one that wouldn't allow me to stay with them any longer.

But this was a good thing, or at least in my opinion it was. I'm sure my family wouldn't approve. Well, perhaps just Rosalie.

Either way, I was doing this, whether people liked it or not.


	4. Alice

_A/N: Hey to my peoples! How you doin'? (that said in an Italian accent, just like Joey). I'm so excited to be writing this fanfic, have I mentioned? Yes? Well, one more time then – I am effing excited about this one! Thanks to everyone who dedicates his time to read this little tale!_

_Special thanks to: Bloftus, __**Janna**__, xxicanseeyouxx, sujari6, Sherry80, and my lovely __**Jerz babe**__._

_**Some comments**__:_

_*Yup, Bella is a good actress as a vampire, and it's mainly because her life and Edward's depend on it. So lucky us, right? ;)_

_*So glad you liked Alice's POV, because it's making a return! Lol_

_*Edward? Well, I guess you'd have to read to find out where he's running off to ;)_

_So here goes! Please enjoy, and don't be shy to review whether you did enjoy or not!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight._

* * *

**Chapter 3: Alice.**

_Alice's POV:_

I pulled to a stop in the driveway outside my house, the car screeching loudly as I hit the breaks like a racecar driver would. Jasper was already there, opening the door for me to get out. When I did, I crushed myself into his ready chest in a tight embrace.

"Jazz," I whimpered, as if my history had long, outstretching _arms_ that wished to grab me. It already had one of the people I cared about most.

"What's the matter, baby?" he asked, as I immediately felt a soothing cloud of positive emotions flooding me. Usually, I would kill him if he tried to work his magic on me in any other place than the bedroom. Now, he was shamelessly manipulating my emotions and I couldn't be more thankful. "I could feel your fright from inside the house."

I pulled away, too see him gazing down at me worriedly. I realized Emmett was standing next to the door, looking worried as well but giving us a moment.

"Call Carlisle and Esme," I told him. "You'll all need to hear this."

He exchanged a look with Emmett, before nodding and leading me back inside the house.

We were sitting in the living room, Jasper cuddling me into him, when Emmett sat himself down on the other couch.

"I called them," he said. "They're on their way. Now would you tell us what's up? I'm seriously freaked out here."

I looked at him, but didn't say anything. There was nothing I could think of saying that would result in any other way than freaking him out even more.

"Can you just tell me if we're in danger?" Jasper asked, stroking my hair gently. "And I say _we_ because if you're in any kind of trouble, I'm right there beside you."

His eyes were so sincere, it scared me for a moment. He seemed like he was prepared to die for me, which was the last thing I wanted to happen. If… _he_, would ever come for me, I would have to lead him away from the rest of them – especially Jasper.

"We all are. Only we're slightly less emo," Emmett smirked at Jasper, who smiled weakly back. He was much too concerned to laugh at anything right now, which I understood perfectly. "So… are we? In danger?"

"I honestly don't know," I replied apologetically.

After a while of just sitting there, Jasper suddenly perked up. I realized why when I heard Carlisle's BMW parking outside. He probably felt their concern before we could hear them. I wondered what _exactly_ Emmett had told them that worried them so much.

Just then, we heard Rosalie climb downstairs lazily, at human pace. She took in the situation as she saw us, and came to stand before us in the living room.

"What's going on?" she asked warily, one hand on her hip. "Why are Carlisle and Esme home?"

None of us answered, so she just sat down and waited for them to come in, which didn't take long. They were in the living room in a human's heartbeat, Esme's arms around me as she sat next to me.

"Is everything alright?" Carlisle asked, looking at me. In fact, they were all looking at me.

"No," I sighed. It was time.

I turned to whisper in Jasper's ear, so low that none of the others could hear. "Just know that I love you no matter what… and that I'm sorry," I said and squeezed his hand before getting up and standing next to Carlisle. Jazz was looking at me with bewildered eyes, more so than everyone else in the room.

"I don't know where to start," I said.

This was something that none of them knew. I'd been hiding my past, hoping that they will never have to know what had happened, and what I had done. I loved them all too much – especially Jasper – to even try and tell them. They were the best people I had ever met, vampire or not. And I knew they would be so extremely disappointed.

"Just start at the beginning," Carlisle encouraged me.

"I'm sure you all remember how James almost managed to kill Bella, a few months ago," I started where I thought best, and everyone's backs straightened at the mention of James' name. "And that he spoke of how I was the only one who ever got away from him."

"Yeah, but we killed that fucker. So what does that have to do with now?" Emmett asked curiously.

"Let her talk," Rosalie asked him.

"The truth is," I said hesitantly. "I _remembered_ him. Not how he chased me before someone turned me into what I am today – my human memories are way too foggy. I remembered him from after I was changed."

"I don't understand. You knew James as a vampire? Did he keep trying to kill you?" Esme, who had been listening attentively, asked.

I shook my head. "No, he didn't keep chasing me. He left."

"Alice, you're not being very clear," Jazz said, and he was probably right.

"Okay, do you remember what I told you about how I was changed?"

He nodded once. "You were confined in the mental asylum. James was after you. A stranger who passed by kindly turned you into a vampire, so you could escape," he said.

"I'm sorry," I said, locking eyes with Jasper. "That wasn't entirely the truth." I decided to continue before anyone else talked. "The person who bit me wasn't a complete stranger. It was James' brother. Nathaniel," I said his name out loud for the first time in centuries.

"After he changed me, I lived with him, as his mate, for a while – which is why James just gave up and left. I didn't know anything else was waiting for me out there, because I couldn't _see_ anything. All I knew was the world I exited in. We… we fed on humans," I barely choked out. I couldn't look at anyone now. "Until he started to change. He became so… controlling. When I killed, I hated it. I did it to survive – only when I needed, and only people who have killed, themselves. He was enjoying it; doing it for sport. And he constantly got mad that I wouldn't _enjoy_ it with him. I had to leave. It took me a few escape attempts before I finally got away from him."

"Why didn't you tell us?" I heard Rose say, after a few moments.

"I was just so ashamed of myself for doing those things," I said. "I was afraid that you wouldn't take me in if you knew about my past. I realized later that you wouldn't turn your backs on me if I had told you the truth, but it was too late. The lie had been told."

"Is he coming after you? Did he do something to you?" Jasper got up and made his way over to me, inspecting me as if to make sure everything was still in place.

"No, no. I'm okay," I said, feeling undeserving of his attention. "He's not coming after me, at least not yet," I said nervously, and Jasper sneered at the option.

"Then what is it?" Carlisle asked patiently.

I took a deep breath. "It's Bella."

"Bella? Is she okay?" Esme asked.

"Did you see something?" Rose pressed.

"I couldn't see anything. So I called Jessica Stanley, and she told me what happened," I said, and embraced myself to say it. "Bella's parents were murdered. And the killer took Bella."

It came as a shock to everyone as they heard the details of what I found. Of course they didn't know how to take it, I didn't know how to take it myself. Bella had been kidnapped. Her parents were dead and gone. And I had lied to them about my past, saying that I couldn't remember when in fact, I could remember everything; each person whose life I took.

Once everyone came down, we tried thinking up a plan.

"So what do we do?" Emmett jumped up eagerly. He was always up for a battle.

"Wait a minute," Rose shook her head. "Are we sure we even want to do something? I mean, I like Bella. But now that Edward's gone, is it really worth risking all our lives for one human girl?"

I knew she wasn't asking out of spitefulness. She was just concerned for our family, like she always was. But nonetheless, Bella was still a part of this family – even if my jerk of a brother left her, for now.

"We can't let anything happen to Bella," Emmett told her, rubbing her shoulder. "Come on, it's Bella."

"I agree," Carlisle nodded.

"Especially since it seems that this… Nathaniel is out to revenge his brother's death," Esme added. "We killed James. And he's probably using Bella to lure Edward to come to him."

"Yeah," Rose said. "I guess you're right."

"We can try to follow Bella's trail, if her scent is still there as Alice said," Carlisle said.

"Wouldn't that be dangerous? Like walking straight into a trap?" Esme asked wisely.

"It would be dangerous no matter how we decide to act. Nathaniel is the most atrocious vampire I know of, and that includes the lines of the Volturi," I said, trying hard not to images of the past flood me. Jasper wrapped his soothing arm around me, and I felt another wave of calm emotions.

"You don't have to do this. I want you to sit this one out," he said quietly, but not quietly enough.

"Maybe that's a good idea," Rose said, concern in her eyes.

"It is certainly _not_," I said, agitated that they would even think I could sit and do nothing while Bella was in the hands of a skillful murderer. "I'm coming with you, whether you like it or not."

Jasper opened his mouth to say protest, but I shushed him. "End of discussion." He nodded, smiling slightly at my reaction.

"So it's decided," Emmett said. "We follow her trail to find her, right?"

Carlisle turned to me. "Alice, can you think of anywhere he might've taken her?" he asked.

I shook my head, after giving it a moment of thought. His manor was too far for him to take her there. There was no other place I knew of. "I wish I knew."

"We'll go tonight, then. After dark," he concluded. "Emmett and I will go, so we don't attract too much attention as a group. If we find any leads, we'll call the rest of you guys."

It seems that everyone was okay with the plan.

"Alright. Kicking some villain vampire _ass_. Love it," Emmett said, throwing his arm around Rosalie.

Esme cleared her throat.

"Language, I know. Sorry, Esme," he said, smiling like a boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"Good boy," she replied.

I sighed. Everyone was taking this much too lightly. Jasper leaned in to whisper in my ear. "Let's go upstairs and talk?"

I nodded, but as a matter of fact, I was fearful of what he might tell me. After all, I had been lying to him – my mate, my partner – for all this time, about everything involving my past. And that included my romantic history.

I followed him upstairs and away from everyone else, to our bedroom, where he led me to sit on the bed, next to him. Our room at the new house was even larger than the old one. So we could fit in an even larger bed – king size, to be exact – and a walk in closet. The curtains in the big room were shed, letting only little light from outside to infiltrate in. There were still a few hours before sunset.

"I'm so sorry, Jazz," I spoke first.

"You lied to me," he said, his eyes scrutinizing my face closely.

"Yes, I did. And what I meant before, by telling you that I love you no matter what, is that… if you decide to leave me, I'll understand," I said quietly. "But, please don't do that."

He shook his head vigorously. "I am not going to leave you, Alice Brandon Whitlock," he reminded me of the addition I'd made to my name years ago. I was his. "I'm just disappointed that you didn't feel like you could trust me with your history."

"I was so ashamed of myself, Jasper."

"I know that. I could feel it, while you were telling us of your past," he said. "But believe me, Alice, if anyone knows what it feels like to be ashamed of yourself for your past actions, it's me."

He was right. His past was full of blood shed, war, and the killing of innocents. But he told me all of it, and I overlooked everything. Not because I had shed blood as well, but because I could see that wasn't who he really was.

"I'm sorry," I said one more time. I didn't know what else to say.

He kept silent for a while, before turning his face back to mine. "Will you tell me more about it? About you and him?"

I was more than reluctant. But I couldn't keep anymore secrets from him. As much as it was scary – revealing everything that I'd been hiding – it was also deliberating in many ways.

"We were… together. Mates. And we lived together in an old manor he owned," I said. "Like I told everyone before, I didn't know anything else existed for me out there. For some reason, I could never see my future while I was with Nathaniel. Maybe that's why I can't see Bella, either. I think it has something to do with his abilities."

"His abilities?" he asked carefully, his face serious. His eyes were burning holes into mine, but this was definitely not the time to jump Jasper, as irresistible as he was.

"Yes," I said. "I'm not exactly sure how they work."

"What have you seen him do?" he asked, his hand entwining itself in mine, to encourage me that I could tell him.

"Well," I started. "When Nathaniel changed me, it was really out of kindness. He said he couldn't let his brother kill an innocent young woman like me. But with time… he changed. He started killing innocent people, and taking pleasure in it. He said it was a rush. The first time I tried to run was after I heard him and his guards discuss his plans. He was going to perform a massacre, just so he could have his _seven course dinner_."

I stopped, every memory creeping back in front of my eyes without my control. Jasper grasped my head between his hands, and pressed our foreheads together.

"I know it's hard for you," he whispered. "I can feel it. But it would be better if you talked about it."

I whispered my consent, and pulled slightly away.

"_He wouldn't let me leave_," I whispered ardently to him, our faces mere inches from one another. I'd be crying if I could shed any tears. But to my dismay, vampires could only shed blood. "I don't know how, but he knew about it, every time I tried to leave he knew, and I couldn't even see him coming. He would be one step ahead of me. When I realized it was impossible… I begged him to let me go. I was lucky that he somehow agreed."

Nathaniel had told me back then that I was a fool; that I would never make it on my own, and that I could be his queen if I had been smart enough to stay. I suspected that he only let me go because he wanted the satisfaction of being proved right about it.

Jasper pulled me into him, for a tight hug, and I buried my head in his warm neck and wrapped my arms around him. "I was lucky as well, then," he whispered again.

"I don't deserve you," I said. "But I love you."

He laughed softly and pulled back to look at me with a boyish smirk on his face. "I'm afraid you've got it backwards, my beauty," he said.

I was just about to protest, when I suddenly got an image thrown in my head, shocking me out of reality for a moment. It was a vision.

When it was finished, my eyes managed to focus on Jasper again.

"What did you see?" He asked, already knowing what probably happened.

"I saw Edward," I said, unable to explain it to myself. "He's headed for Italy."

"Italy?" he asked, looking at me with questioning eyes. "What for? Is it…"

"I don't know," I answered and got up, pissed at my stupid, so called gift. If I couldn't see clearly, had holes in my vision, and sometimes had no vision at all, then what use was it?

"I can see only where Edward's going, but I can't see what he's going to do, and I can't see what's going on with Bella either," I sighed out heavily. "Damn it, why can't I see anything valuable?" I cursed myself rather loudly.

He got up as well, and his hand reached for mine, holding me in place in front of him. "You can't control what you see or don't see, Alice," he said quietly.

"But that's exactly the problem," I said in disconcertment. "I'm no use to anyone like this!"

"Don't say that," he said heatedly.

"No, seriously!" I repeated, frustrated with myself for my current incompetence, for lying and hiding, for being unsuccessful in convincing Edward to stay in Forks. "What good am I, if all I ever do is disappoint?" I whispered in defeat.

"Stop talking like that. You are everything to me," he said with anger in his voice, and took a step forward that pushed our bodies together. I didn't dare say anything; I kept silent as he raised his hand and ran it in my hair, his other hand on my lower back, pressing me to him. At that moment, it felt as if he literally owned me. All of me.

Then he pulled me into his kiss, soft and hot, one hand still in my hair but the other one already trailing all over me. I let his lips linger over mine as long as I could before fervor took over, making me grasp his face and return the kiss with everything I had in me; every bit of passion, frustration, anger, love. And god, did I love this man.

He groaned deeply and pressed me further into him, igniting the most urgent feeling of need in me. He didn't seem to want to take it slow either, because within seconds, I was stripped to my lingerie and pressed up against the nearest wall, my upper layers nowhere to be found. Jasper was always faster than I was.

By the hair, I pulled him in for another eager kiss before lowering him down to my neck and upper chest, to where he gladly turned his attention. I took the opportunity to rid him of his clothes, careful not to tear anything – I did pick those out for him, after all. I loved the feeling of his firm, naked body against mine, where I could feel him hard and ready for me in every way possible.

He twisted one of my legs around him and buried his head in my chest, working his way up with his mouth, and moaning silently into my heated skin. My whole fucking body tingled. A moment later, I was laid across the bed, where he finally disposed of the rest of my clothes – which were starting to feel as heavy as stones on my skin.

For a few moments that felt like hours, I was in a state of pure elation – my head thrown back, my back bent upwards, and the rest of my body adored by my soul-mate's lavish lips.

Finally, his face aligned with mine, his golden eyes unyieldingly staring at me with an expression I couldn't figure out. It was lustful, no doubt, but it was mixed with other emotions, rage definitely being one of them.

As he stared, he held onto one of my thighs, and in one swift motion pushed himself into my depths. We both moaned out at the sensation, and I wrapped my legs further around him to allow him better access.

He started moving himself in me, with every thrust going faster, harder – and before I knew it, he was pounding into me with force, while his soft hands as a contrast moved gently down my breasts and onto the rest of my body. I moaned, locked into his powerful gaze, while my hips lifted themselves up to meet his with every time he drove himself into me.

"You were in his bed," he suddenly whispered, his face handsome hardening.

That's what it was, then. Jealousy.

"It's _your_ bed I'm in now," I reminded him in a whisper, lustfully licking my lips.

"Did you love him?" he asked, his eyes looking like a lost puppy's. I cupped his face in my hands tenderly, and shook my head.

"Only you," I replied earnestly.

Then his expression hardened again. He pulled himself up to sit, and pulled my body along with his, without detaching us from each other. I began moving myself on top of him, but he took control quickly enough, grasping my hips and lowering me onto him, over and over. I held my arms around him tighter, my face buried in his neck and straining for breaths that I didn't even need, technically.

He clutched my hips, my back, my ass, controlling the rhythm of my movements as well as the rhythm of my loud pants.

"Did he ever make you feel like this?" he asked hoarsely, pulling his head slightly back to look at my face. With his words, his thrusting became even wilder than before. I didn't know how he could even think it, but I understood his doubts right now; I had lied to him. Hid from him entire parts of myself.

"No – God, no," I breathed, pressing my forehead to his as I felt my nearing climax.

"And when his hands were all over you… did he ever touch you like I do?" he asked against my lips, one of his hands cupping my breast ever so softly, his thumb brushing over it. I had honestly never felt anything remotely as good as his touch, his sex. "You're mine, Alice," he said, claiming what was already his. "Just mine."

I nodded, capturing his lips with mine again and again, until every nerve ending in my body felt like it was literally exploding. I could vaguely hear Jasper's groans over mine, as he gripped me almost painfully – not that I cared. It could only serve to intensify what I was feeling at the moment. I held onto him for dear life, our bodies shaking severely together. I could understand why the French sometimes call an orgasm "La Petite Mort" – the little death. Because it felt like I had died and gone to heaven.

Eventually, though, I came back – or more accurately, Jasper brought me back, with tender kisses and soft caresses. I held him quietly, very much aware of his presence inside me still, hard as marble.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, running his hands through my hair gently. "You have to understand – the thought of you and another man… it's torturous."

_Seeing you like this is torturous_.

I nodded. "I know it is, Jasper, but that was so long ago. I've only ever loved you," I told him again, and kissed him firmly on the lips. "I'm so sorry for not telling you."

"I know," he whispered, and kissed me again.

As his lips rested against mine, he laid me down on my back and started moving again, much more slowly this time, attentive to my body. We stayed just like that, until the sun finally set outside.

* * *

_A/N: So… that was my first A/J lemon. Did I pop any of your A/J cherries? Either way, tell me your thoughts on the chapter, awesomes!_


	5. Denali

_A/N: Well hello there! How are you guys? I'm so, so glad to see some of my old readers (so loyal) in addition to my spankin' new awesome ones! You all rock! I hope you liked everything (aka __**Cavesper or Jealousper**__) so far, and that you'll like this chapter as well! We're definitely getting close to finding what Edward is planning ;)_

_Thank you to everyone, BUT a very special thanks to: sujari6, bloftus, xxicanseeyou, takch1, Kisbydog, __**Janna**__, BrigidJune, Sherry80, and __**Jerz-babe.**_

_Enjoy and tell me your thoughts – I'm dying to know! No, I'm literally checking my mail account every 5 seconds to hear what you think. So, you know. Please._

**_C_heck out my new twitter page - username morie312! I'll start posting little "teaser" lines soon if anyone's interested. Plus, I'm cute, right? So follow meee :)**

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight._

* * *

**Chapter 4: Denali.**

_Tanya's POV_:

I watched my sister as she floated in the pool carelessly. Her skin shone because of the sun that came through the transparent glass ceiling, that our brother Eleazar had installed for her. She loved pretending she was out in the sun – as if she was a human, wearing oversized sunglasses and designer bathing suits.

I perked my head at a sudden noise of footsteps nearby.

Kate must've heard it too, because she looked in my direction, tilting her sunglasses down on her nose.

"Carmen and Irina?" she wondered aloud. Our sisters had been out hunting for animals in the nearby forest. But no, the nearing footsteps weren't theirs.

I shook my head. "Company."

Since I was fully dressed, I got up from my "tanning chair" and marched into the living room, leaving Kate in the pool. Exchanging looks, Eleazar and I passed the foyer, opened the door, and came out to greet our guests.

Two vampires, nomads from what I could tell, walked slowly towards us, as if to emphasize their coming in peace. The man looked handsome – I'd seen better, of course – and besides, he seemed strange at best.

The young woman was quite striking – with her long brown hair and small figure – but she had a very modest presence about her. Almost as if she was making herself invisible. Both their eyes were of a crimson color, like I used to have before adopting the new diet… uh, I mean, _lifestyle_.

"Welcome," Eleazar called towards them as they approached.

"Hello," the male said, nodding his head towards us both.

"How can we… assist you?"

"We were hoping you might be able to help us find someone," he said, smiling eerily.

"And who might that be?" I asked, as Kate joined us, wearing a towel robe over her two-piece.

"Edward Cullen," the girl finally spoke, her voice meek. She looked fairly uncomfortable.

Every cell of my body snapped up in attention, although I tried not to show it outwardly.

_Now what would these strangers want with Edward?_

"A dear friend of ours," the man added.

Eleazar and Kate didn't speak, but I could feel Kate preparing for possible conflict.

"What are your names, if I may ask?" I asked suspiciously.

"My name is Nathaniel. This here is Bella," he said.

_I've heard that name before… of course_.

"Bella? Are you… were you Edward's human?" I corrected myself.

Edward had told me about her on his last visit here. He had left her to protect her. How heartbreakingly boring. But it did explain the last time he had been up in Denali – I asked him then if he ran away because of "women trouble" and he said it was "not the way I thought". Being attracted to a human is definitely women trouble of the kind I would have _never_ thought.

I didn't try to make a move on him again, like last time. One rejection was enough for me. Besides, he was obviously still into that fragile little girl of his. He only came here because he needed directions, and left when I gave them to him.

"I was," she said, suddenly more confident. "It's really important that I find him, and I figured he must've stopped by here at some point." There was something in her eyes. As if she was _pleading_ me to understand some hidden meaning in her words.

I smiled. "Why don't you come in, then?" I suggested.

Eleazar caught on quickly enough, and smiled as well. "Mi casa es su casa."

"Thank you," the male said, walking towards us and shaking hands with Eleazar, again with that god awful smile.

We walked into the living room, and sat down with our guests.

"Would you like some cooled Caribou blood? It's quite delightful," Kate offered. "I can see you're not vegetarian, but…"

"I-I'm vegetarian," Bella stuttered. "I'm just… new."

_Quite phenomenal. He left her because she was human, and she got herself bitten to get him back, did she? That should upset him quite a bit when she finds him._

"Have you hunted yet?" I asked her curiously, and she shook her head. "Bring the girl a bottle, Kate."

My sister went into the kitchen immediately.

"Don't worry. It's not as bad as you'd think," I calmed her. She looked so stressed, I didn't know what to make of it.

"Speak for yourself," the man laughed. "You vegans would drink anything."

Eleazar smiled politely. "Nathaniel, is it?" He nodded. "We respect every man's life choices. However, we would appreciate it if you didn't feed in our territory. I hope you understand."

"Certainly, certainly. I wouldn't dream of it," he replied.

"Here you go, Bella," Kate bounced back into the living room and handed her the bottle. I saw Nathaniel look at her like only a man does, while she sat down and her robe opened slightly.

Bella mumbled her thank you, and looked at the bottle vigilantly, examining it. She then closed her eyes and slowly sipped the blood. Her face contorted with disgust at first, but soon enough she was gulping down the whole amount. She was thirsty.

"So," Nathaniel started. "Edward Cullen?"

_Someone's eager_.

"Yes," I said. "Well, you were right. He was here. Unfortunately, he left a couple of days ago. But he did say he was headed to South America," I lied. The girl might be okay, if I took Edward's word for it, but there was no way I was giving that creepy man Edward's true location. I was not that dense.

"I see," he said thoughtfully. "Any idea where exactly?"

"Several places, actually," I said, hoping to stall them as much time as possible in South America. "Ecuador. Chile. Brazil. He wanted to start in Venezuela, I believe."

"Is that so?" Nathaniel _mused_ more than actually asked.

"He did always want to go see the Angel Falls," Bella joined the lie. She was sharper than I had thought.

"Of course, you're welcome to stay for a few hours. Eleazar can order you the plain tickets and all the papers you'll need, and get you a few sets of contact lenses."

"That would be gracious," he answered.

"Thank you," Bella said, locking eyes with me.

_Yes, I know you want to speak to me alone, you impatient newborn. That's why I'm wasting my money on getting you plain tickets to nowhere_.

* * *

_Bella's POV_:

Blood was pretty much disgusting. But unfortunately for me, I had to get used to it, and fast – before I starved to death. _You wanted to become a vampire,_ I reminded myself. _Not like I had much of a choice_, I reminded myself again.

After Tanya – the strawberry blonde who, by the way, was freakishly much hotter than Edward had said – misleadingly told us we would be able to find Edward in South America, we still stayed for a few hours. The older one, Eleazar, was getting us stuff we needed for our "trip".

I knew she was lying about Edward's whereabouts. I didn't know her, but I still saw it in her eyes. It didn't matter that Edward wasn't in South America, though. I wasn't really planning on finding him yet.

Right now Nathaniel still suspected me, watched me closely, but once I gained his trust, I would be able to attack him when he least expected it, and kill him. I just hoped I would have what it takes to kill for my survival.

After that, I would find Edward.

When our three hosts went to the other room to consult about something privately – which I figured involved _us_, I took the opportunity to act on the little plan that was forming in my head.

"I'm going to ask Tanya to speak to me alone," I told Nathaniel quietly.

"And why would you do that, Bella?" he asked distrustfully.

"To try and get more information out of that conniving little bitch, of course," I said, surprised at how much easier it was getting to lie. "I want to know for sure if she and Edward have something going on. And to make sure she isn't lying, of course."

"She did seem a little eager to send us to South America," he said. "Alright. Talk to her in private."

When they came back, I asked Tanya for a word. She agreed, and Eleazar retired to his room, leaving the equally gorgeous (and half naked) Kate to entertain Nathaniel, which I guessed was deliberate.

"Please tell me that Edward isn't really in South America," I talked Tanya quietly the moment she closed the door of the study room we were in.

"Of course he isn't," she rolled her eyes, her slight Russian accent surfacing. "Did you really think I would give up his real location?"

"Good," I said. "Because that vampire sitting in your living room right now is most probably a sociopath, who wants to kill Edward for killing his brother James," I spilled every piece of information that I had.

"So you're trying to lead him straight to him? Are you insane?" she asked.

"Of course not," I defended myself. "He kidnapped me while I was still human. I had to convince him that I wanted Edward dead just as much as he does, so he would change me, and-"

"Wow," she chuckled darkly. "You _are_ crazy."

"It was the only plan I could think of, while I was _strapped to a chair_," I said, effectively shutting her up. "Now, can I use your phone? Please?" Better not forget my manners.

She nodded and pointed to her cell phone on the desk. I picked it up and dialed Alice's cell phone number. It rang a few times before she answered.

"Hello?" she asked, sounding baffled, probably because she didn't recognize the number.

"Alice. It's me," I said quietly.

"Bella?" she all but shouted. "Swear to me that's you!"

"Alice, come on. I don't have much time."

"Oh my god, I didn't know what to think! They said you were kidnapped. Are you okay? Where the hell are you?"

"I'm fine. I'm in Denali," I said.

I told her, in short, of the whole story. I was surprised that she couldn't see everything that had happened – the kidnapping, me being turned into a vampire and going to Alaska. Tanya stood next to me and listened in on the conversation.

"Don't worry," I said. "I'm not going to let him find Edward. I'll kill him. Soon."

"No! Don't do that!" she yelled out.

"What? Why not?"

"Bella, I know Nathaniel," she sighed. "He's very unpredictable. He'll know. You can't do it alone."

_Alice knows Nathaniel? What the…_

"She's right," Tanya said. "Eleazar has seen his powers."

"He has powers?" I asked, recalling my asking him if he knew any vampires with gifts.

"He can copy other vampires' gifts temporarily when he touches them – permanently if he kills them." she said. "Which is why he probably knows about Eleazar and Kate's talents now." She sighed. "He also becomes immune to them forever. Which is why when he shook Eleazar's hand, he couldn't get a read on him anymore."

"That would explain why Alice is unable to see all of this."

And that would also explain why he kept trying to fondle me after he changed me. Or maybe that was just because he was a pervert. Good chance to both.

"I knew there was a reason!" Alice said excitedly into the phone. "That's how he knew I was going to escape," she said.

"Wait- what?" I asked confusedly.

"Never mind about that," she said. "Just wait for us. We can take him down, if we're all together. _Please_ don't try anything alone," she pleaded.

I sighed. I didn't want to drag everyone into this, but I honestly didn't know if I could do it alone, and if he killed me, he might be able to get to Edward. I couldn't allow that.

"Fine," I said. "What should I do?"

"Just go to South America and stall him," she said. "Edward's in Italy right now."

_Italy? Why Italy?_ I thought, trying to remember every conversation we'd had – but he'd never mentioned wanting to go to Italy.

"So you'll come to South America?" I asked, since I feared Nathaniel would come knocking at any moment.

"No. We'll join Edward when he leaves Italy. If you tell Nathaniel that he's in Italy, he'll never believe you. He'll think you're trying to turn him in to the Volturi."

"The _who_?" I asked. Tanya rolled her eyes.

"Never mind now," she said. "Anyway – I'll contact you when Edward leaves Italy, and we'll go find him."

"No. I don't want Edward to get involved in this, risk his life," I said. He was the one Nathaniel wanted, after all. And even though I'd already pretty much lost him, I wouldn't be able to stand losing him forever.

"Bella, please. Edward can take care of himself. And besides, we'll all be there to protect him. Just go to South America and wait for my call."

I sighed and turned to Tanya. "Can I borrow this cell phone?"

She made a face, but nodded in agreement nonetheless.

"Okay," I said. "When he leaves Italy, we'll all find Edward, and then join him and kill Nathaniel," I repeated her plan, just to make sure I understood it fully.

"Exactly," she breathed. "I'm so glad that you're alive, Bells." I chuckled at her loose use of the term _alive_. "Oh, you know what I mean."

"Thanks, Alice," I said, smiling. Suddenly I couldn't wait to see her and the rest of the Cullens. And then there was, of course, Edward. He was a different matter altogether. I missed him so much, that I thought just seeing his face would last me the next 500 years. On the other hand, I feared to find out that maybe he'd left me not only because I was human, but for other reasons.

After hanging up, I put the phone on vibrate and put it in one of the coat's inner pockets. "I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of this," I told Tanya. "You've done me a huge favor."

"Yeah, yeah. I know," she said, obviously not wanting to have a sappy moment with me. Not that I did.

"Do you know what's Edward doing in Italy?"

"I do," she smiled. "But telling you that is one favor that I _can't_ do for you."

* * *

_Edward's POV_:

I stood in front of the three vampires sitting in their high chairs – like they're fucking royalty. I was very much aware that the guards of the Volturi were surrounding me as I stood there.

Most of them were bored, and just wanted to get this over with so they can feed on the humans that Heidi brings home for dinner soon. The more intelligent ones were thinking of how stupid I was to even ask for such a thing. Caius, as always, wished he could just kill me and get it over with. From the nature of his thoughts, it was all about jealousy. Marcus was, as always, bored. He wanted to get back to his wife.

And still, I was awaiting my answer.

And I got it. Aro started laughing, as if it was very amusing to him. He wasn't amused at all – he just liked keeping a façade of someone remotely likeable. He knew that I could see, or rather _hear_, right through it.

"That's preposterous," he finally said, smiling down at me. His thoughts matched his words, which rarely happened. "I'm afraid we can't help you with that, even if we wanted to… and why on earth would we want to?"

_I should torture you just for requesting such a stupid thing_, I heard Jane's thoughts, which were directed straight for me.

"I'm curious, Edward," he said. "Would you give me your hand so I could have a better understanding of the situation?"

I reluctantly stepped forward and offered him my hand, fully knowing that the request was only a formality. I didn't have a choice anyway. He took my hand, and for a few moments got lost in my thoughts and memories. When he returned, he did so with an expression of great surprise.

"Exquisite," he said in awe, and I could tell he was referring to Bella. "But all this – for a human? You're willing to give up everything because of her?"

I nodded grimly, thinking of how I had just left her behind. "Yes."

"He's dead serious, isn't he?" Caius asked with a look of disgust on his face.

"Yes. Yes, he is," Aro turned to answer him. "But you know that we can't let you do that, with or without our help. You're much too valuable." He tried to block out his thoughts from me as he kept talking, but I knew what he meant exactly. They wanted me to join them. They wanted my talent – reading minds – at their side. They didn't want it lost forever.

"With all due respect," I said. _And there's very little of that_. "I am not going to join the lines of the Volturi. Can you not help me with this?"

"No," Aro said.

"Cannot, and will not," Marcus said the last word.

_Aww. That's a shame,_ I heard Jane again, and shot her a dirty look behind my shoulder. She just raised a cocky eyebrow and smiled smugly.

"Fine," I said to the three 'kings'. "I'll see myself out, if that's alright with you."

"Actually," Aro said. "Jane and Alec will see you out."

He didn't want me to listen in on their thoughts or conversation from the other side.

I turned around and followed Jane and Alec towards the exit. We passed their still-human secretary and wannabe Volturi, Gianna, on our way to the outer hall. She winked at me suggestively. Foolish girl, playing with fire. It seemed that Alec agreed with me on that part.

"You stupid child of a vampire," Jane said, and laughed coldly, as they continued walking beside me in their red cloaks. "Were you changed with rotten venom?"

"My wishes are none of your business," I said, and immediately fell down on the floor, my mind bursting with unbelievable pain. I covered my ears, and groaned through the pain. The girl was talented. It was agonizing. A moment later, she stopped.

"Next time… _weigh your words_," she callously said.

* * *

_Aro's POV_:

The boy had lost his mind. To request such a thing. Ha! Did he really think we would grant him of such a wish? That we would willingly relinquish a talent such as _his_, and all because of one insignificant human?

Oh, no.

He might have thought that he would never join us _now_, but he couldn't know what the future holds – he would only learn that in a matter of a few more centuries, sadly.

"Felix," I ordered. As usual, his body tensed with loyal attention. Oh, how I admired loyalty. "Follow him while he's in Volterra. Don't let him out of your sight. If he attempts anything…"

"Kill him," Caius said.

I nodded. "Kill him."


	6. Unpredictable

_A/N: Hey hey! What's up, readers/loved ones? Have I mentioned I'm excited about this story? Several times? Oh, right. Hope you like this chapter!_

_Special thanks to: __**Janna**__, Bloftus, xxMasonAndAlex4Everxx, gabby871 (you will have to wait and see!), kidbydog, frlarsson, and Sherry80._

_P.S: I'm working on a playlist for this chapter and the previous ones too, which will soon be in my profile._

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight._

_

* * *

_

**Chapter 5: Unpredictable.**

_Bella's POV_:

"Well, I guess that's another complete failure," Nathaniel said as we got back to the car we rented for the purpose of seeming human. It was some kind of convertible sports car, so he just jumped right in without opening the door. I could hear by the tone of his voice that he was growing more and more suspicious of me, with every place we visited and failed to find Edward. "Are you coming, or are you waiting for the sun to rise?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

I realized the fear of my plan being discovered had made me freeze in my place. I shook it off and got in the car as well. "I was so sure he would have been here at some point," I tried to put on my best disappointed looking face.

He looked at me for a moment before he started the car. Actually, he was still looking at me as he pulled out of the driveway. "You said the same thing about the last six places we've been to," he said dryly.

I didn't reply. I just looked out of the car silently, staring at the beautiful hills. It was the first time I'd ever been to Ecuador, or outside of the U.S. for that matter, and like many other things that had happened lately – I never imagined this was how it would turn out. Instead of traveling with someone that I love, and could properly share the experience with, I was traveling with a psycho vampire who wanted to kill my boyfriend.

_Don't you mean your ex-boyfriend?_

I sighed and pushed the thoughts away. Edward had left because he loved me and wanted to protect me. Or at least, that is what I chose to believe. It was the only thing giving me hope right now, so really – I had to.

I wished I could see all of this amazing scenery of Banos, Ecuador, with Edward. And honestly – as much as I wanted to become a vampire so I could be with Edward – I wanted to be able to see Ecuador in the daylight. The beautiful, ancient blue church we were passing by right now.

But days in South America were usually sunny, like Phoenix was. So I had to settle for nightly visits to the different attractions of Ecuador, and Venezuela and Chile before that. That also meant we couldn't use our sunglasses, but at least the contacts that Eleazar got for us were holding up quite nicely. Looking in the mirror without them was a strange experience.

"Tomorrow is the last night we're spending in this god forsaken place," he said suddenly, bringing me out of my brooding. "So you better think of a place from which we can track his scent, or… something," he said, his face contorting.

"I'll think of something," I said, trying to convince myself more so than him. "Maybe we can check if the hotel has some internet access –"

"Do you think I'm stupid?" he interrupted, looking at me fiercely and paying zero attention to the road.

_Shit_.

"What? No, I –"

He laughed heartily, causing me to stare at him blankly in confusion. "Stop squirming, Bella. I'm only kidding, of course. You would never betray me," he said.

_Wow. Is it possible I've been a better actress than I even thought?_

"…not when you know exactly what will happen to you if you will," he added with a wink.

If my heart wasn't frozen in my chest, it would probably start pounding.

We got back to the hotel we were staying in, where Nathaniel immediately threw his arm around my shoulders casually, trying to demonstrate us as a regular couple, or something of that sort. In reality, it was chilling. But I had to do what he said and keep up the pretence – otherwise, the results were pretty much obvious. Both Nathaniel and Alice had made that clear. So I smiled to the receptionist, who smiled warmly back, unsuspecting.

Did I mention he got us the freaking honeymoon suite? I nearly hurled in my mouth when I heard him request it. And then smiled. Welcome, Mr. And Mrs. Nathaniel Renshaw.

Luckily, the suite had a separate bedroom.

"I must say," he said as we entered the room, taking off our coats. "These new clothes I've purchased for you suit you quite nicely."

_Okay. Seriously. What is up with this guy? Does he really think we're a couple now_?

We just agreed that we both needed a few sets of clothes, so the people at the hotel wouldn't see us wear the same clothes for a few days straight. As for the money? No idea how he had gotten it, and frankly – I thought I was better off not knowing.

"Thank you," I said, smiling meekly.

"So, what would you like to do? Perhaps watch a movie? I hear they have quite the selection."

"No, I think I'll just go to my room for now," I said, turning to go there. I was itching to go check if Alice had called yet. He stopped me in my place, laying his hand on my stomach.

"What is it? Are you not interested in my company?" he asked, tilting his head inquiringly.

"No, that's… that's not it," I corrected myself. "I'm just exhausted from all the site seeing and bummed about not finding Edward –"

"So let me better your mood," his lips curled up in a smile. "Believe me, I know how to make a woman… content," he leaned closer to my ear, his hand brushing my hair back.

_Oh yeah. I'm sure many ladies would go for you, creep_.

My first urge was to struggle; throw him back and rip him apart for daring to touch me. But I had to fight that urge. I needed to gain his trust, not get on his bad side and probably get myself killed.

I forced a polite smile on my face. "I would just like to… unwind," I said. "Besides, a girl needs some alone time every now and then."

He looked at me seriously for a long moment before smiling again. "Very well. I can understand that. I'll be here if you need anything," he said.

"Umm… thanks," I said.

_That was easy_, I thought.

I turned to my room, but I couldn't help but notice he was… staring. He was looking at me in a way that no century year old vampire should ever look at an 18 year old newborn. Well, if excluding Edward – but on the other hand, Edward wasn't a murderer.

I closed the door behind me, ignoring Nathaniel's staring gaze.

_Alone, finally_, I thought as I hurried towards the bed and checked the cell phone I hid under the mattress.

1 missed call.

It was Alice. I guessed Edward had left Italy now, and so the plan was set in motion. I had to wait until Mr. Deranged decided to leave the room before I could call her back, which could prove to be difficult. But then, we were going to find Edward. Or more like – I was going to lead Nathaniel straight to Edward.

I sat down on the bed against the headboard, cuddling myself in all the pillows. Just a little something to remind me of home. Cuddling in bed with pillows. Only it felt weird now, what with my body resembling hard marble and all. _Everything_ felt weird now.

I grabbed a one of the hotel's magazines from the drawer and pretended to read it, while I was actually trying to calm my nerves.

As much as I wanted to see Edward, and to get rid of the life-threat in the next room, I also wanted to keep him safe. And somehow, going straight to an unsuspecting Edward with said life-threat didn't seem like the best idea.

I sighed, leaning my head back against the wall, trying to figure out how the hell I got myself into this situation in the first place.

Only I _didn't_ get myself into the situation. I was put in it. Forced into it. Pulled away from everything I knew and everyone I loved, and fucking kidnapped.

The mere thought pissed me off. Really pissed me off.

Most of all, I felt alone. Not totally alone ever since I'd talked to Alice, but still – I was on my own with this crap. I couldn't have my freedom, I felt like I might be murdered at any second, and I missed my parents so damn much.

At any situation I had in my life, no matter how bad it was, at least I knew I had my parents (at least one of them at a time) with me. Even when Edward left, I still had someone. Now I had no one, and that made me fucking pissed.

So pissed, I was practically ready to storm out of my room and rip that guy's throat off. Did I have a lighter, to burn the pieces?

I groaned quietly.

As if I had the actual guts to kill him. Especially after Alice had warned me about him and swore me to do nothing. If Nathaniel didn't kill me, Alice probably would.

I spent the day wondering about Alice's connection to Nathaniel, and the possible outcomes of finding Edward. Before I knew it, it was near sunset again. And for us, the beginning of another day.

* * *

_Edward's POV_:

Two weeks.

Two weeks I'd been roaming around in the streets of Volterra, not sure what exactly I was looking for. Or more accurately, I knew what I was looking for, but I had no idea _where_ to look. And since the Volturi was my one and only lead – a lead I had gotten from Tanya – and they had so 'kindly' refused me, I was officially out of ideas.

So I roamed around each night, I guess hoping to run into something or someone. What else could I do? I couldn't go back to Seattle, not with my family feeling sorry for me, whispering solutions to my sulking problem behind my back.

And I couldn't go back to Forks, either. I needed to let Bella have her clean break, just as I had promised her. It's what was best for _her_. The last thing she needed – and probably the last thing she wanted – was to see me.

This night, though… it was particularly dark. I noticed, because I could barely see the stone built sidewalks in the dim moonlight – and I was a vampire.

_This is why they call us the creatures of the night_, I mused to myself as I passed through one of the alleyways.

Footsteps.

I fought the urge to stop in my place, because that would probably be stupid. If an attacker was walking behind me, he would attack the minute he knew I suspected his existence. Or maybe I was just imagining things. Why would anyone stalk me here? The Volturi may have turned down my request, but they wouldn't dare hurt me – not when they so desperately wanted my gift under their custody.

And then… shuffling.

I would have to be fucking stupid to think someone _isn't_ following me.

I started picking up the pace of my steps. A pace that wouldn't be strange to the human eye – not that there were any humans around – just in case it was one of _their_ guards. If they wanted me dead, all they needed was for me to provide them with an excuse.

The person behind me picked up the pace as well, although I suspected he was far enough for me to be unable to see him. It was definitely no human, if he could hear my footsteps from a far distance.

I turned at one of the alleyways, and turned again to get back to where I was about fifteen minutes earlier. As I suspected, the stalker was still behind me somewhere. And as I further suspected, he had been following me for a while – because now I could recognize his scent. Strong and bitter.

It was Felix. Now it made sense why the sound of footsteps was of Italian dress shoes – he was always one for high fashion.

I purposely stopped and turned around, waiting for him to face me. He should have no business following me, and I wanted to know why the hell he was.

He stepped out of the shadows with a grim look on his face, almost angry.

"Felix," I greeted.

He remained silent, and very still. Every bone in my body was getting ready to attack or defend – but as long as he showed no signs of hostility, I wasn't going to get myself closely involved with a Volturi guard.

"Is there something you need?" I asked.

I could tell he was guarding his thoughts, because they were all in Oscan – an ancient Italian language that goes all the way to before count. One that, unfortunately, I had not yet mastered.

"Well, since you asked. You might as well tell me what you're still doing here," he said, taking a few slow steps towards me and then stopping again.

"I wasn't aware of any laws against enjoying the fine sights of Italy," I said.

"Now, if that was what you really wanted, you would go to Rome, Milan, Venice, Naples… no. You still haven't given up on that stupid little whim of yours," he sneered in contempt.

I could faintly sense some of his saliva hitting me as he over-pronounced the word 'stupid'.

"I respect the Volturi's wishes to decline," I said defensively, determined not to give him any excuse to attack.

The Volturi guards were like those agents from the Matrix. If you see one, you don't stay and fight; you fucking _run_. Unless you're fatally stupid, like I am.

"You respect nothing," he raised his voice. "You're drawing attention to yourself, and to us," he continued. "That is something we cannot withstand."

"Okay. You and I both know that I haven't been drawing any attention, to myself or otherwise," I said, starting to feel irritated about this. "If you're just looking for an excuse to start a war, then so be it. But believe me, it _will_ be a war, because not one vampire in the world would agree to live under the democracy of murderers."

By the time I'd finished talking, I was breathing heavily. I had to breathe to speak, but I don't suppose I'd respired this fast in my entire vampire life.

He responded with a disrespecting chuckle. "Oh, young boy. You think too highly of our people. No one is going to care about one insignificant vampire. And make no mistake – you are insignificant."

As he spoke, he took a few more steps towards me, narrowing the distance to merely inches.

He was right; The Volturi's hands weren't exactly clean of innocent blood, and everyone knew that. And still no one rose up against them. Why would anyone do so now?

"Aro would not be pleased," I said, making my last attempt – one that I knew would be a failed one.

He laughed darkly, his stench hovering over my nose. "Aro was the one who ordered me to kill you."

With the realization that I had no chance to escape this, I moved swiftly. I rammed into him until his body was thrown against the stone wall, cracking it. He snarled, obviously taken aback by my sudden aggression. He did not expect this kill to be a hard one.

I threw myself against him, ready to throw him to the ground, but he moved behind me and pushed me, face forward into the wall.

"Big mistake, high-school boy," he growled in my ear, before he pulled me back by the hair, and thrashed my head against the wall again.

I felt searing pain shooting from my right temple to my neck, like the worst migraine multiplied by a thousand. The stones on the wall were crumbling around me.

Somehow I managed to turn around and go at his body again, fending him off of me. I moved as quickly as I could around him, in an attempt to strangle him, but his reaction was faster than mine.

He was ready for me; he grabbed my arm and threw me to the ground, his hand circling around my neck.

"Time to die now," I faintly heard him say as I felt his hands tighten around my neck, ready to snap it entirely. I closed my eyes.

_I love you, Bella_, a last thought passed through my head, even though Bella was nowhere near there. I guess I was somehow hoping she would hear or sense it.

Suddenly, his hand loosened.

I thought that maybe this was it. Maybe he had done it, and all I was feeling was the relief of pressure, now that I was really, finally dead.

I opened my eyes, just to see Felix still kneeling above me, his hand still close to my neck in the same position it had been – except he was completely frozen in his place.

I coughed, my throat feeling closed.

What kind of a strange hell was this?

I reached my hand and waved it in front of his face, to see if he reacts. He didn't move an inch.

"What the hell are you doing?" I heard a female voice shout behind me. "Get up your arse and move from under there!"

And, apparently British.

I rolled to the side and got up to face the human girl, her golden brown hair wild as if she'd been running, and her green eyes wild with panic.

"Who are you?" I asked. It took me about one second to realize that I couldn't read her mind, either. Just like Bella.

"That really matter? We have about two minutes before the vampire wakes up again and kills us. How do you deal with extra baggage when you run?"

I shook my head. I had no idea what the hell was going on. "Why?"

"Because you're going to have to carry me on your back, silly," she said, still breathing heavily from her run.

"Carry you, where?"

"Back to England," she said.

* * *

_Bella's POV_:

I was brought back from my thoughts when I heard shuffling in the other room. I got up silently, slightly alarmed by the sudden noises. Anything can happen when you're in captive.

I took a few steps closer to the door, trying to listen to what exactly was going on, until I had my ear practically pressed against the door.

There was only silence for a few moments…

Before the door suddenly swung open, almost knocking me out of my feet.

_Whoa. Apparently turning into a vampire gives you better balance_.

"Bella, I-"

Nathaniel was standing in front of me, with an amused look on his face.

"Did I just startle you?" he asked.

"Maybe a little. What?" I said curtly.

"I'm going to check us out," he said, still smiling widely at my almost-fall. "In the meantime, pack our fake luggage so we can get it in the car," he winked, and disappeared at vampire speed.

I waited to hear the door close shut, before I went over to my mattress, took out the cell phone and dialed Alice's number.

The phone rang a few times – in the meantime I kicked the bed out of impatience, which caused a little fracture in the wood. I had to get used to this newfound strength of mine. I liked that.

"Bella," she answered.

"Alice," I breathed out of habit. "I can't talk much. Where is he?"

"He's on his way to Lancaster," she said.

_First Italy, now England? What the hell is going on?_

"Why Lancaster?"

She sighed heavily in my ear. "Bella, I can't see anything, okay? He's blurring my vision with his stupid non-decisions."

"So are you on your way there?"

"Tomorrow. We just need to hunt something first, but we'll do it here."

"Okay," I said. "I'll bring Nathaniel to England."

"Bells, are you alright?" she asked worriedly after a short pause.

I considered that. "I'll be fine once this is over. I'm just not sure this is a good idea."

"Oh, Bella. You don't have to worry about any of us. Especially Edward. You just look after yourself, okay?"

"Yeah, okay," I said, trying my mightiest to just trust her – despite the terrible feeling that this whole plan will go wrong. "I gotta go," I said.

"Bye, Bells. See you soon," she said, a hint of cheerfulness in her voice.

"Bye," I said and hung up. I returned the cell phone to its place as I heard Nathaniel's footsteps outside the hotel-room door.

I went out of my room to the suite, and next thing I knew – I was pressed with my back against the wall, trapped there by Nathaniel's arms.

I opened my mouth to speak, but no words would come out.

"Don't. Say. A word," he said in a low growl. "Don't you _fucking_ say a word!"

I gulped, unable to even try to move. It was as if I was petrified.

He laughed darkly. "Do you really think that you can fool me?" He let me go, and started pacing in front of me. "Do you really think that I don't know about your little cell phone?"

_Oh god_.

"Yeah," he said. "I know. And I also know that you have some kind of informer. And I am fucking _tired_ of waiting for you to give me what I need."

"I-"

"Shut the hell up!" he said, and a lamp from somewhere across the room flew and broke when it hit the wall, next to me. I stared at him in trepidation, wondering what on earth he just did.

_Shit. I think he just… did he just…?_

"You don't talk unless I tell you to talk," he said, and suddenly he was up in my face again. I nodded slowly. This was Alice meant when she said he was unpredictable, I guess.

_He just threw that lamp at the wall without touching it. I think that counts as unpredictable. And if he can do that… what else can he do?_

"Look at you; Lying to me. Leading me on. Making me think that we have something special," he said, making my eyes widen with surprise. He actually thought I was interested in him somehow? "Now you tell me everything that I need to know, right now. Speak."

"He was in Italy. That's why we couldn't go there," I choked out. I had no idea what this _Volturi_ thing was, but Alice said Nathaniel would be afraid of them.

He moved backwards, his expression changing, softening.

"In Italy," he said. "Are you sure?"

I nodded. "I knew you wouldn't want to go there, because of the Volturi," I said. "I didn't want you to think I was trying to pull something."

"What do you know about the Volturi?"

"Enough," I said carefully.

"Well, I guess I _wouldn't_ want to go there. Where is he now?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

"He's going to England as we speak," I said, hoping this revelation will make him, well, _not_ kill me.

He looked thoughtful for a second, before his focus returned to me, and he pressed me to the wall again – this time not as harshly. "Do you forgive him?" he asked with what seemed like sadness. "Do you want him back? Do you not want to kill him?"

I gathered myself, until I could form something that resembled a smile on my face. "Of course I still want to kill him. I _don't_ forgive him," I said. If he needed to think that I was interested in him, in order for me to stay alive, then so be it. Why shouldn't I use my womanly charms to save my life?

"We're in this together," I added.

I saw him consider that for a second, before he nodded, and a small smile spread on his face. "I believe you," he said, looking down at me. "My Bella."

_Oh no_, I thought as I realized what was going on.

As he leaned in towards me, I made the conscious decision not to resist. And then his lips were on top of mine, kissing me. His eyes were closed, mine open. His lips weren't persistent; they just lingered there softly, as if waiting for my reaction. So I slightly moved my lips against his, doing exactly what he said I was doing – leading him on. He caressed one of my cheeks with his hand, and I decided to stop praying for this to end, and end this myself.

I moved my head slightly to the side, breaking the kiss. He licked his lips.

"We should get going," I said quietly, biting my lip.

"Yeah," he whispered with a small smile, and turned away to go get our luggage.

Thank heavens that I wasn't able to cry – because if I could, I would be sobbing right now. Nathaniel had just kissed me. And I had to kiss back, because he would never believe me otherwise.

It's not that he wasn't handsome, no. It probably had something to do with the fact that he was a mental case who _fucking killed my parents_.

But it wasn't just that; I felt like I had betrayed Edward. He might had left me, but I knew it wasn't because he had stopped loving me – and I hadn't stopped loving him, either. Edward was the only person I had ever kissed, if you count out the sloppy 8th grade kiss with Kyle Pollock, playing truth or dare.

I was the most detested excuse for a girl in the entire world.

* * *

_A/N: Okay. Some of you might be displeased with the current events, BUT remember this still is an Edward & Bella story, and eventually – eventually – they will get their happily ever after. Eventually. So no, Bella's not cheating on Edward, and Edward isn't going to cheat on Bella; their loyalty remains to each other._

_I would love to hear what you guys think, though! So drop a comment, let me know what you like and dislike about this story so far. Thanks people!_

_You can check out my Twitter account, on username Morie312. I'm going to start giving out little teasers from future chapters there!_

Recommendations for some great fics:

**Desolute Heaven** by Kisbydog. It's a new story, but it's completely amazing. For anyone who wants a story that's different and refreshing – it even has Alec POV in it! Just great.

**The Best Part of Me Was You** by justagirl1238. Edward makes a big mistake and now he needs to find his way back to Bella. May sound like just any other fic, but the writing is really good.

**The Longest Summer** by lexiecullen17, which I am sure needs no introduction. It's so fun to read, I'm sure you'll catch up in a day.


	7. Houseguest

A/N: _Okay, so – a few author comments here. First of all, I beg your forgiveness for taking this long. Seriously. Second year at university? Not a joke! Who'd have thought, right? So I give you this chapter to make up for it. It is literally the longest chapter of anything I have ever written, and probably the words that have made me proudest of myself. I have to admit though, that after this chapter it will take a while before another chapter comes along – since I have all this work to do. But if you stick with me, I guarantee an interesting story for you __._

_Thank you to everyone who takes their time to read this story, I hope you continue to enjoy it! Special quadruple thanks to the awesome __**Janna**__, kidbydog, bloftus, frlarsson, Sherry80, and sujari6! You guys are amazing!_

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight, but I do own the British girl.

* * *

**Chapter 6: Houseguest.**

_Edward's POV_:

The girl was still awake.

Still awake, although I'd been running for about a day now. I'd already managed to run through Italy – by night – and the mountains of Switzerland by day. Apparently, I _was_ fast enough despite the girl silently hanging on my back, still awake.

How was she still awake?

I was getting tired of her silence. I needed some answers, and one of them better explained why I couldn't read her thoughts.

"Hey," I said, asking for her attention as I kept running through the forests.

"What?" She asked innocently, as if she didn't know how strange this situation was for me.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"My name is Charlotte," she simply said.

"That's great. _Who are you?_" I repeated. "How did you know where to find me? What-"

"You know, you have a lot of questions for someone whose life I just saved. You're welcome, by the way," she said, chuckling.

"That reminds me. How the hell did you do that to him?" I asked, referring to the 990 year old vampire she just froze or… something.

"Why don't you just run for now? I'll tell you everything when we get there," she said reassuringly. I was not reassured.

"You haven't exactly told me where we're going. And since I'm the one carrying _you_, I think you should at least tell me who you are and where I'm going," I said, looking back at her while I ran.

"Jesus," she said, rolling her eyes at me. "Are all vampires this annoying?"

I raised my eyebrows, awaiting an answer. My being annoying to her really didn't matter to me right now.

"Fine," she muttered. "We're going back to my place in Lancaster. I'm working on something that may be able to help you."

I shook my head, looking forward at the road again. "How come every answer you give me raises ten other questions?"

"I honestly don't know, friend."

"Let's just run," I finally said, giving up my attempts for answers. This girl was much too frustrating.

Once we got to France, we caught a train to Le Havre, and a ferry to England from there. All that, of course, was paid for by Charlotte, since I didn't have a dollar – or a Euro – in my pocket. Who would've thought that a nice little nightly stroll would lead to having to run all the way to fucking Lancaster?

"I swear I'll pay you back," I said as we got down from the ferry.

"Don't worry about it," she brushed me off and smiled. "Consider it a pay back for carrying me all the way from Italy."

Since it was night again, we ran some more, until we got to Lancashire. I had no idea what we were doing there, but I was hoping that this girl could lead me to the person I was looking for.

"I think we should walk from here. Normal pace," she said.

"Yeah – humans. Wouldn't want to seem weird," I nodded.

"Sweetheart, you're American. Around here that already makes you weird."

I chuckled.

"Don't you want to know my name?" I asked a while later, when we reached her street. "The stranger you're letting inside your house?"

"I already know your name," she said.

"Yeah, I figured that. I was just trying to get you to tell me _how_ you know my name," I said, not hiding my annoyance of her evasive attitude.

"Yeah, I figured that," she repeated my own words as she unlocked the door to her house. The house wasn't very big, but it wasn't very small, either. It was white, with a white picket fence, and a red rooftop. Not exactly the bachelorette pad you'd expect a young girl to have.

"Welcome, please make yourself comfortable," she said as she let me in. For a moment I thought she was going to invite me in, as many legends about vampires say is required. Which made me wonder, just how much did she really know about us, and how?

"Thanks," I said as I walked into the house. There was a ray of light coming for the ceiling at the entrance, causing my skin to shine. "What's this?" I asked her.

"What, this?" she asked, pointing at the lamp above me. "It's artificial sunlight. Just to make sure no vampires try to infiltrate without my knowledge."

"Huh," I smirked. This girl was oddly informative. "What other traps have you got around here?"

"Oh, just a few self-destruct buttons strategically placed around the perimeter. Which reminds me – if you see a button you don't know what is for, don't press it."

I just looked at her, not sure how I should respond to that. So, not only was she strangely informative, she was also strangely paranoid?

"Would you like something? I mean, I've taken the liberty to purchase some animal blood off the Red Market," she said.

_Only more and more questions_.

"Red Market?" I asked as I sat down on the couch.

"Blood market. Let's just say Lancaster has a very active nightlife."

I _had_ heard about England being the home of many nomad vampires, but I didn't think anyone who _wasn't_ a vampire would be aware of that fact. If the Volturi found out about this, they would probably go on a rampage.

"Who are you?" I repeated my question from earlier, hoping to get an actual answer this time.

"Don't you know, Edward?" she asked with a smile, sitting on the other couch, next to mine. "I'm the person you've been looking for."

My body froze. And I mean that beyond the sense of how it froze 100 or so years ago, when I was turned. She was it. _She_ was my one shot.

"You're the…?"

"I'm the witch."

* * *

"Still overwhelmed?" Charlotte asked as I finished my bottle of blood, and overwhelmed wasn't the half of it.

I was aware of the existence of witches… vaguely. It was more of a myth, actually. So when Tanya told me of a witch that might be able to help me, I took it as a long shot. I didn't actually think there'd be witches out there – although the Volturi's lack of willingness to help me find her was kind of suspicious.

Her being a witch, though – it explained things such as her expanded knowledge about our kind, and my not being able to read her thoughts.

I sighed and nodded, placing the bottle on the living room table. "Thank you," I said. "So does this mean you're finally ready to give me some answers?"

"Will you do the same for me?" she raised an eyebrow.

This girl was impossible. I nodded anyway; it was only fair.

"What do you want to know?" she leaned forward attentively.

"Do you really have what I'm looking for?"

"I'm working on it. I think it's going to be ready soon, but I can't be positively sure until it happens," she said.

"Okay," I said. There was no point rushing her through it.

"My turn," she said, narrowing her eyes. "Why do you want to go back to being human?"

I sighed, not sure if I should tell her, or if I could trust her enough to involve Bella into this.

"There's a girl, isn't there?" she smirked. "A human girl."

I just nodded.

"I guess that's fair," she said. "Although I couldn't imagine any sane girl who would be willing to be around _your_ annoying vampire ass," she joked.

…_Insufferable_.

"Why, you jealous, witch girl?" I asked, snarky.

"I would be, but clearly, you have no game," she grinned.

"Fine," I shook my head with a smile. I had too many questions to battle wits with her. "How did you know where to find me?"

"I have a spy with the Volturi," she smiled proudly.

"That would be pretty clever, if it were possible."

"Her name is Gianna," she crossed her arms against her chest, once again annoyed.

"You're kidding me," I said. Fucking Gianna, spying for a witch. If only they knew.

"No, I am in fact not _shitting_ you," she laughed. "She told me you were there and what you wanted. So I figured they'd try to kill you eventually."

"I figured that much, too," I admitted. "So do you… work with a spell-book, or what?"

She burst into laughter. "Spell-book? What is it, 1623? I'm a chemist, Edward. I work on dead vampire cells down in my lab."

"You have a lab?"

She just laughed some more, and nodded. "I also conjured up some other serums, like the one I used on your little friend while he was choking you. I fill some small darts with the serum; shoot him, and _bam_ – the vampire's paralyzed for long enough so you could run. Now, the dart is of my own design; its needle is thin enough to penetrate even vampire skin. It even has a little venom to help."

"Wow," was all I could muster up. I felt like I was stuck inside some strange science fiction novel. And I was a vampire.

"Me again," she said. "What happens if I can't do it? What will you do then?"

I considered that. I had absolutely no answer. "That… is not an option." She gave me a suspecting look. I hoped she wouldn't think I was threatening her or anything. "Just wishful thinking."

She nodded silently, staring down at the empty bottle of blood on the table.

"How long do you think it'll take?" I asked. Trying not to push, I added, "If you succeed?"

"I can't know that, Edward. I promise you that I will do everything in my power to get it done, but for all I know it might take years," she said worriedly.

I sighed deeply and nodded. "However long it takes."

I really did mean it. I would just find Bella, whatever age she is, and convince her to take me back. Hopefully, she wouldn't turn 60 before I was human.

"Glad to see you're on board," she said. "So – another question. How difficult would you say it is, not being able to hear my thoughts?" she smiled, cocking an eyebrow.

I laughed. "To be honest, you're not the first." I recalled walking into the school cafeteria that one day, trying to get into Bella's head and getting so frustrated by it that I wanted to pull my own hair out (to the dismay of a few cheerleaders, probably).

"Oh?" she said. "Let me guess. It's the human girl."

I just smiled.

"Well, that explains it."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What?"

"You were attracted to her because of the mystery of it," she said simply.

"It's a lot more than _that_," I replied.

"Of course it is, now, but imagine back when you fell in love with her – that you could hear every single thought she owned, including her fawning over your handsome face and rock hard… body?"

I considered that. "I would still want her just as much," I said, not being able to think of any other outcome. Frankly, I didn't like what she was trying to say; that there was no way that I could love a girl who was "unexcitingly" human.

"If you say so," she smiled.

"Is this a usual for you?" I asked, trying to change the subject. "Working alongside vampires?"

"Actually, you're the first stray I've actually taken into my home," she smiled. "And probably also the last, seeing as how you're really annoying."

"So you think I have a handsome face and, what was that? A rock hard _body_?" I smirked.

"Would you look at that, it's time for me to go to bed," she gazed at her watch and faked disappointment. "Too bad you won't be getting any more answers tonight, right?"

"And what am I supposed to do while you're sleeping? And by the way – how is it possible that you haven't slept in days?"

"Remind me to tell you about that sometime," she said, only frustrating me further. "Now let me show you to the library."

She started working, and I started reading. That said library? It was massive. She had materials dating back to centuries ago – some about witches, some about vampires, a lot about humans. I was mainly interested in a couple of books telling about what seemed to be Charlotte's family history, the lineage of witches she descended from. Some of it was so personal that I decided to stop reading and just ask her about it. It just felt too intrusive.

I hoped to ask her in the morning, but somehow she slipped past me and went down to her lab, just leaving me a note to help myself to some blood and watch television.

This was surreal on so many levels.

I tried watching television, but most of the things on it seemed incredibly stupid. I mean, who the hell invented reality shows, anyway? I browsed around the house, just looking at the general decoration and her strange choice of objects. Her house was mostly big, but some parts of it still gave a warm kind of feeling. I wondered if she had always lived alone in the house, or if there had been a man with her there at some point.

I spent a lot of time in the library, but at some point, I couldn't look at words anymore. I needed to relax my mind and busy it with other things besides witches and serums that might turn me back into a human and send me back to Bella.

So eventually, I returned to watching reality shows. I was practically hooked on The Hills by nightfall, thinking things like, "Bella would so totally tell Audrina to dump Justin Bobby".

…Surreal on so many levels.

She came back up in the evening, looking exhausted. She immediately smiled when she saw me, making two small dimples appear.

"Any luck so far?" I asked, smiling as well from the couch, where I was sitting.

"No," she said, dropping herself roughly next to me. "But believe me – _when_ I succeed, it won't have anything to do with luck, but mere talent."

I chuckled. "As long as you're not getting cocky."

"This is me being humble, is what it is," she laughed. "Is it true that vampires drink alcoholic beverages?"

"We do," I said. "I rarely ever drink, though."

"You won't even have a beer?" she asked, her green eyes looking at me hopefully. They kind of reminded me of my own eyes, before I was turned. Green and innocent.

"Okay," I complied.

She brought us a couple of beers from the fridge.

"Thanks," I said as I accepted mine from her. "So… what do you do, when you're not chasing down vampires just to help them?" I smiled.

"Reading. Strolling around Lancaster or London. But truthfully, I spend most of the time down in my lab, trying to develop new serums and medications."

"Medications?" I asked between sips of the beer.

"Yes. I've been trying to work something to heal old biting scars."

I paused for a moment before speaking. "Why are you helping vampires? Aren't vampires and witches supposed to be old time enemies?" I wrinkled my forehead.

"I just like the science of it," she shrugged.

I looked at her skeptically. "_You just like the science of it_?"

She laughed out and sipped her beer. "I'm a bad liar, aren't I?"

"I'd say that again," I chuckled.

She sighed loudly. "I guess… I guess I've always kind of thought that, if I could do something for the vampires, the animosity will eventually end. I know – that's incredibly naïve. But in my defense, I also have ways of paralyzing vampires and enhancing human strength, so…"

"No, I think it's great. You're trying to make a truce," I said, although I had my doubts about whether that would happen. The Volturi wasn't exactly kind and forgiving.

"Something like that," she replied.

"Enhancing human strength, you say?" I asked, curious again.

She chuckled. "You wanted to know how it is that I didn't sleep for days?"

"I suppose one of your serums did that?"

She smiled proudly.

"What else?" I asked.

"Now, now. I can't be giving away all of my trade secrets to a vampire, can I? Although I guess you've found enough while exploring my home," she smiled once more.

"Your place is really nice, by the way. I realized I haven't told you that," I said, realizing I'd forgotten my manners somewhere between getting saved and getting bored.

"Yeah? Did you enjoy the library? I have quite a few history books there," she said excitedly.

"I've looked, though I didn't read the ones about _your_ family history," I said, hoping she'd tell me. Knowledge about witches was extremely rare these days. "I didn't want to pry."

"Sure, Edward. I'll tell you," she grinned, understanding everything. "There was a coven in 1612 in Pendel Forest. That's actually around here, though some of it was cut down for a luxury hotel. Anyhow – there were about… twenty people in this coven. And this old woman – witch – Elizabeth Sowthern… she was accused of being a witch. Prosecuted. And instead of _fighting_, she gave herself up and confessed," she said, like she was trying to figure out why would anyone do that. "And not only did she confess, but she also gave up her own grand-daughter, Anne Whittle. Apparently, she was crazy. She claimed to have made a deal with what she described as _the devil, who came at night and sucked all of her blood_."

I nodded in understanding. She basically accused vampires of the whole situation.

"People, of course, believed in vampires back then. Not like today, when if someone says he believes in magical creatures he gets endlessly laughed at. So, apparently, it peeved your fellow vampires that the witch talked about them. As you know, they don't like to be exposed to humans, let alone be accused of anything, so that started the legendary war between the two sides. All because of one crazy witch," she smiled wickedly at her use of words. "Unfortunately, you guys have _slightly_ greater powers than we do, which is why there are very little witches left."

_I don't think slightly covers it, but okay_.

"Do you know of any?" I asked curiously.

She thought about it for a moment. "I know of two in Africa, and one in Australia, but that's pretty much it."

I nodded slowly.

"So anyway, after Elizabeth and Anne went completely mad and managed to turn in every member of their coven, eight witches got released. And you're looking at the progeny of one of them," she smiled.

"So if you don't know any other witches… what happened to your family?" I asked, hoping I didn't cross any lines.

"Killed," she simply said.

"Vampires?" I asked, for a moment wishing I hadn't brought it up.

She shook her head. "Humans. Drunk driving humans, to be exact."

"I'm sorry," I said quietly, feeling most uncomfortable.

"That's okay. It was a long time ago. Just goes to show you that not every species are all good or all bad, right?"

I just nodded again.

"So, Edward. Tell me a little about your family. Gianna tells me that you live with six other vampires."

"My family," I smiled, feeling a twinge of guilt about the way I'd treated them since I'd left Bella. "Carlisle turned me a century ago, and since then we've been collecting our family members. Changing people who have been near death."

"Don't you guys have mates, though?" she asked.

"The rest of my family are mates. Three couples. And then there's Bella and I," I looked down, hoping there still _could_ be a Bella and I.

"Oh god!" she yelled out with a smile, a few seconds later. "I can only imagine what that was like for you – living with three couples in one house and hearing their thoughts all day and all night long," she said, and burst into laughter.

"That's not funny," I shook my head.

"It sort of _is_, actually," she replied, still laughing.

"Well, let's just say that Bella has managed to distract me just fine ever since I've met her," I said, sipping my beer.

She raised her eyebrow at me.

"Not like that. We haven't… done anything," I corrected myself. I didn't want her to think anything like that about my Bella. Although I would… definitely love to be able to _be_ with Bella, I would never tell people about our love life. Suppose we ever have those.

"Oh, no way!" she shouted again.

"What?"

"Don't tell me you want to become human so you could sex up your girl? Cause I imagine that doesn't work so well, what with you being a vampire."

"Of course not," I protested. "I want to be able to give her a normal life. This is not about me wanting to sleep with her."

"Although that's a little part of it, isn't it?" she winked.

I just shook my head with a smile and continued to sip my beer.

_Of course_ it was a part of it.

Charlotte and I continued our daily routine for the following two weeks; She'd work through the day, I'd wait impatiently, and then we'd dedicate the evenings to just talking and clearing our heads.

This wasn't getting me anywhere, though. Sure, I'd made a friend. But I wanted to return to my humanity, go back to Bella, tell her that I had been the biggest idiot for leaving and beg her to take me back.

One night I realized, it could take years before that serum works. Who knows if she ever does it? She'd promised me that she'll get it done and working, but thus far I hadn't seen any results, and I was getting beyond frustrated. That was the night when I snapped at her.

I was pacing when she reached upstairs. The television was off. The only sound made in the room was of the fire crackling in the fireplace.

"What's going on?" she asked, eyeing me suspiciously as she probably realized I was pissed.

"Nothing," I said flatly. "Any progress yet?"

She opened her mouth to speak, but I wouldn't let her. "Let me guess," I said, stopping my pacing steps. "There isn't any, but you'll surely have better luck tomorrow."

She looked stunned, her brows furrowed and her mouth gaped. "You're seriously angry with me?" I gave her no response. "For what?"

I was silent again. I didn't want every bit of frustration inside me to burst out. I didn't want to get ugly.

"Great. You don't even know what you're mad about. You men are terrific," she said and chuckled, like it was a matter of nothing.

"You promised me. You _promised_ that you would do everything in your power to give me my humanity back," I said quietly.

"Edward," she said, her tone softening, and made a few steps towards me. "I've told you, it might take years. I never said I could get it done quickly, have I?"

"No, you haven't. But you did say that you would do everything in your power, and you're _not_," I said coldly.

"Really? Because I'm pretty sure I _am_," she said.

"You're just… I can't handle with it taking years, okay?" I was yelling now. "Not years, not months. I need to go back. She needs me to come back. And you need to make that happen soon."

"And _you_ need to calm the fuck down, okay? Don't threaten me," she fumed.

"I'm not threatening you," I said impatiently. How absurd to think that I would do that. "I'm going crazy here, and it seems like you're not at all uncomfortable with my waiting around here."

"Oh my _god_, are you cocky. Do you think I actually give a damn if you went away? That I'm some sort of a lonely bachelorette looking for company because I'm allergic to cats?" she shouted, crossing her arms against her chest irately.

"I didn't mean it like that," I said. I was just so desperate to see Bella. I was losing my mind thinking about the last time I'd seen her; telling her that I didn't want her anymore. Everything was so fucking messed up.

"Whatever you meant; you need to remember that I'm doing _you_ a favor here. What more do you want from me?"

"I want you to make a serum that fucking works," I spat back. I was being unkind. Needlessly unkind – just like I had been with my own family. But I was so riled up that I couldn't even bring myself to care.

"Oh, and you don't think I want that to happen?" she replied angrily. "I'm spending every bit of time on my hands working in that damned lab, so I would at least expect to be appreciated for it – and there goes this prick and tells me that I'm not doing enough," she ranted, more to herself than anyone, poking my chest with her finger as she said the words 'this prick'.

I grabbed her hand to get it off my chest, and said, "You know exactly what I want you to do." And she knew exactly what I'd meant. She'd been working all day, yes. But she could've been working all night, as well. I knew how selfish I was, but if being selfish was necessary, then so be it.

She pulled her hand back, and stared at me for a few moments with a heaving chest and a deathly glare on her face.

"Fine," she finally said coldly. "So here's what's going to happen. I'm going to take that fucking awakening serum and stay up all night in the lab, just like you wanted. _You're_ going to take my vampire sedatives, because honestly, you're an extremely large pain in my arse and if I think about your pacing down here while I work, I might just burn this freaking house down!"

I stared back at her in silence before I spoke. "What the fuck are vampire sedatives?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes with a groan. "That's _all_ you heard just now?"

"I heard you. Are you right about done?" I asked with a smirk on my face.

"Yes," she pouted slightly, as if disappointed I didn't continue the argument. Man, were witches strange.

"So what are vampire sedatives?" I repeated my question.

Her lip curled up with a half-smile. "When was the last time you had a good night's sleep?"

"1918," I answered warily, after a quick recall.

"Well, you're about to have one tonight," she said. "A while ago, I tried to make something that will paralyze you people for longer periods of time, but it turned out more like a light sleeping pill. You just slowly doze off for a few hours, like you just had a really long day. Which I guess you've been having for the past ninety years or so," she chuckled softly.

I felt bad. It wasn't what I'd said to her that I regretted; it was _how_ I'd said it. I could have definitely been nicer about it.

Though I _was_ excited about the idea of sleeping. I almost forgot how it felt, except for the vague memory of how nice and cozy it is to wake up and continue sleeping a little longer.

"Okay," I nodded, and waited for her to disappear into the lab and come back upstairs with the sedatives.

She was silent as I sat down on one of the kitchen stools, and she stuck the needle in the top part of my arm. It actually hurt a little as it penetrated through my hard skin, but I tried not to wince.

I was already starting to feel strange as she showed me to the guest bedroom. I felt heavier somehow, slow. It had been so long since I'd felt… tired, like that. I stood in front of the already made bed and actually _yawned_.

She laughed in response. "I can't tell you how nice it is to know that it's working," she said. "I've only tested it on tissues beforehand."

"…What the-?" I asked, outraged. Who gave the witch permission to use me as her guinea pig, anyway?

"I'm kidding," she said, smiling politely.

_Oh_.

I scowled at her. "Would you look at that, it's time for me to go to bed," I used her previous words against her, and then stopped short. "Wow, was that weird to say," I added with a laugh.

"I can only imagine, thankfully," she chuckled. "So, umm… if you need anything, just use the intercom next to your bed, it has a direct line to the lab. And… have a good night," she said, and started receding towards the hall.

"Hey," I called after her hesitantly.

She turned around. "I know – you're sorry."

"Actually, I was just going to say thanks," I said with a grin.

"Good night, Edward," she said with an eye roll, and headed to the hall, closing the door behind her.

I didn't even feel myself fall asleep before I did. I don't think I was dreaming per se, but I had this certain feeling, an essence… Bella's essence. It was as if she was near me, surrounding me in all directions. So when I sensed I was being pulled away from her by rude voices urging me to wake up, I protested. What I tried to say was, "leave me alone, I'm sleeping." What actually came out was a moany "Mm hmm huh hmm."

I tried to stay under the influence of my sweet sleep, and along with it – my sweet Bella. I tried to get sucked back in and succumb to the dark, but the annoying British female wouldn't let me.

"No, you _must_ wake up this instant!" the voice urged further.

Finally, I woke up with alertness. My chest filled with feelings of grief, like I had lost Bella all over again. And then I was filled with anger.

"What, god damn it, _what_?" I groaned loudly at Charlotte.

"No, I don't even care that you're being utterly offensive right now," she enthused. "You wouldn't believe the news I have!"

I took a second to look at her, her words not fully registering with me just yet. She looked like a complete mess; her hair looked like a hurricane hit it, her eyes – did she have those glasses on before? – were mad, and there was some sort of red liquid staining her shirt.

"What happened to _you_?" I asked, sitting up.

"The serum – the serum!" she yelled out. "Are you sleeping naked?" she asked with a crooked face.

"What? No," I answered, and wiped my face with my hands to try and gain my own awareness back. It was proving to be difficult.

_Why would she think I'm naked? Did she say something about a serum_?

"Edward," she said, more seriously now. "I've got it. I did it. I can make you human again."

I realized two things. One was, she probably thought I was naked because I slept in my boxers. The other thing? Well, I only half-realized that one.

"You mean…?"

"I mean, I can friggin' make you human again, so you need to wake up, get dressed, and meet my in the kitchen – that is, if you still want your humanity back."

I flew out of bed, gave her a quick hug of gratitude (which made her look dazzled at best) and then quickly dragged her out of the room and closed the door, ignoring her objections. Then I proceeded to get dressed – which I did quicker than she could even arrive to the kitchen. At vampire speed, I beat her to the kitchen and sat down on the stool I was on the night before, a childish grin splattered all over my face.

And I _was_ like I kid. A kid at Christmas, about to get the present that he specifically requested from Santa. Being human again and getting back together with Bella Swan. I was glad to say that Santa found me to be nice, rather than naughty, this year.

"My, are you eager," she chuckled.

I chuckled back with happiness, waiting for her to fill the needle with fluid. I actually couldn't remember the last time I had been quite this thrilled.

"You must really love her," she said, her expression unreadable for a moment.

"More than anything – are we doing this or what?" I asked.

"Hold your horses please," she said, finishing with the needle. "Okay. So there are a few things you need to know before I inject you with this."

"Quickly, please," I said, calculating in my head how fast it would take me to get back to Forks, Washington.

"First, this will feel strange. And from what I've seen in the lab, it will happen quickly – very quickly. Secondly, I can't guarantee that it will work. This time you really are the first human, or soon to be human, subject. Also, I can't guarantee that it won't kill you. And I mean that beyond the sense of being vampire-dead."

I nodded. So far, so good. If I couldn't be with Bella, what point was there to exist anyway?

"Now, I'm not going to wear you with reminders that you will, in fact, be human if all goes well, and you will not have all the virtues you have today. That is, you'll be vulnerable, and you won't be able to hear people's thoughts… I'm not going to do that," she said, despite the middle part of her sentence where she did it. "Because I know how much you want this."

"Yes," I said.

"So that leaves the most important warning I have to give you," she said, sighing heavily. "After you do this, there's absolutely no going back. Once you're human again, you won't be able to turn back into vampire. If you get bitten, you die. That's the deal."

I considered that for the slightest moment – that was all it took for me to realize how much this was worth it. Growing old with Bella, away from supernatural danger, somewhere quiet.

I rolled up the top of my shirt's sleeve. "Let's do it."

She nodded, and gave me one last meaningful look. "Just in case you die on me… it was really nice knowing you, Edward."

I smiled. "You too, Charlotte."

_If the lovely miss Bella's mistaken again, I might be forced to suspect that something is wrong here_, I heard abruptly. I hadn't heard something like it for over two weeks, so it was hard to tell, but that was definitely someone's thoughts. And they were about Bella. What were the chances of a coincidence? I needed to keep hearing.

"No, wait –" I tried to warn Charlotte. But she had already forcefully stuck the needle in my arm, thoroughly hurting me this time, and pushed the fluid in.

She looked at me with alarm in her eyes, as I began to get dizzy. Everything was suddenly a blur; it was like in the movies, where the hero takes off his glasses and can't see as well. Like when Spiderman lost his powers. The male voice I'd heard before was only a whisper now, rapidly echoing in my head until it was no more.

I felt myself collapse, but something held me up. I realized it was Charlotte, steadying me back onto the stool. I felt weakened. I felt as if all my senses were getting significantly less sharp. I felt sick.

And then a heartbeat. A pounding heartbeat, signaling me that I was no longer dead; I was alive again. A deep breath entered my throat like an old instinct that had just resurfaced, making me cough a few times. I closed my eyes, unable to take the ongoing dizziness.

Finally, just as I was about to be sick, I felt everything balancing. I felt… human.

I opened my eyes, and saw Charlotte. She looked a bit different, and the image my eyes saw wasn't as good as before, but it was still her.

"How do you feel?" she asked, and I had to strain my ears a bit to hear as clearly as before.

"Horrible," I summed it up, trying to get used to breathing regularly again.

"Edward, why did you tell me to stop?" she asked, a frightened look on her face.

"Oh no," I said, and came to the kitchen window. No one was outside. "I heard someone's thoughts. He was coming here, and he was thinking about Bella. Shit," I said.

"He was coming _here_, you say? Are you sure?" she asked, the alarm clear in her voice, which was getting easier to hear.

"Yeah," I replied.

"This area is suppose to be secluded, nobody should know we're here," she said, and ran to one of the kitchen drawers, opening it and fetching something that looked like a first aid kit. She unzipped it, revealing about 20 darts and a small dart-gun. She loaded the gun, put it in her pants along with a few more darts, and zipped the kit back. "Let's go," she said, pulling my hand and leading me after her.

"What's going on?" I asked, assuming it had something to do with this uncalled guest. What did it mean, though? Did he know Bella? Was he looking for me? Too many questions spun in my head, and my mind was no longer capable of containing it all, _and_ thinking about what to do at the same time.

"We have to get out of here," she said, and ran outside. I ran out after her, feeling strangely slow, but not tired.

I was also very, very cold. I was only wearing a long sleeved t-shirt, no coat and no layers. I'd forgotten _humans_ needed to keep warm.

We ran past her picket fence, reached the road where we came from, and then – then we saw them.

I'd thought I was adapting to this new condition, to being human again, but apparently I wasn't; I wasn't, because I was seeing things now. Or wasn't I?

There was a man coming out of the woods, walking slowly with a huge smirk upon his face. On second thought – that wasn't a man. But that wasn't the part I thought I was hallucinating, no.

Alongside that man? It was Bella.

_My_ Bella. Isabella Marie Swan.

I thought I was probably imagining it; but on the other hand, I could never imagine Bella to be this beautiful. She looked glowing, her dark hair flown in her face by the intense wind, her slim figure almost floating in our direction, lovely yet hesitant.

Another point against imagining – I wouldn't picture Bella this worried if she really were just a fictive creation of my mind.

Which meant…

It _was_ Bella.

My heartbeat picked up a few thousand notches, racing like a hungry cheetah. Bella was slowly approaching me, along with a vampire. And she seemed so different. Not the expression on her face, or the cute little worry creases on her forehead – just her in general. I couldn't quite point it out – she…

_Her eyes_, I suddenly noticed, and my newly beating heart nearly stopped altogether. _Her eyes are red_. That's when I noticed the almost transparent complexion of her skin, the silkier nature of her hair, and the smoothness of her walk; Bella would never walk this elegantly. She walked like… Bella. She'd try her best just not to trip and fall. She wouldn't walk like this, unless she was…

_Oh god_.

If I thought I'd had questions before, it was _nothing_ compared to what was going on in my head at that moment. I wished so much to be able to read minds.

_Has someone turned Bella? Why did she do it? Was it simply because I wouldn't? She had someone _else_ change her? This complete stranger? Who the fuck _is_ that? Are they… together? Fuck me if they're fucking together. What are they both doing here together anyway? Was she looking for me? Why is she looking this worried? God, she looks beautiful_-

Before I knew it, they were both standing a short distance from us. Bella kept looking between me and that fellow she was with.

"Edward Cullen," he stated, smiling sinisterly. It reminded me of the way Aro smiled. A hypocritical smile – like a lion smiled to a sheep.

I could barely take my eyes off Bella. She mouthed my name, as if she were unable to actually say it. Like she was in too much of a shock. Well, if I was in shock looking at her as a vampire, she would be in 10 times more of a shock to see me like this… human. Green eyes and everything.

And then it dawned on me.

I was human. Bella was a vampire. I'd turned human to _be_ with her, and she was a vampire now. Maybe she did it for me, maybe not. But once again, there was something separating us. She wasn't human anymore. And I couldn't be changed back.

"Y-you're human," Bella stuttered.

"You're not," I said back, but it turned out to be nothing but a whisper.

_No, no, no no no._

"Okay, enough with the chit-chat," the man said. "Time to kill the ex-boyfriend. Bella?" he said, and turned to her.

Before I could even register what he had just said, they both froze in their places. I looked at Charlotte, only to find her in firing position, her dart-gun in her hand. She shot a paralyzing dart at Bella. At _my_ Bella.

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked outrageously.

"I don't know if you've noticed this, Edward, but it seems these two are here to kill you," she said as she ran to the fence, pressed something behind it, and ran back to the road, in front of the two frozen vampires.

"No… no! Bella's not here to kill me," I said. It couldn't be. Bella loved me. Or at least, used to love me. And she couldn't hurt a fly. And I mean that in the most literal way possible.

"Fine. Let's go," she said and tried to pull me away.

"No," I repeated. "Look, I don't know what's going on here, so until I do – I'm not leaving Bella alone with this creep," my protective side kicked in.

"You're _human_, Edward! Vulnerable, remember? She's a vampire, she can handle him better than you can, and she won't be harmed by the explosion."

"What explosion?" I asked, looking at the frozen figure of Bella, like a frightened little china doll.

"I pressed self-destruct. Now move it, come on!" She said, pulling at my arm.

"No," I said once more and shook my head, getting closer to Bella, trying to figure out how to take her with us before the house explodes.

"You can't move her, Edward, you'll harm her!" Charlotte cried out, pulling me harder.

_Harm her?_ I didn't want to risk that.

I managed to sneak one stroke of Bella's hair and cheek before Charlotte managed to pull me away and lead me to the car, as if I was a rag doll. Just the opposite of Bella, the china doll. A rag doll too shocked to be able to do anything but obey.

Apparently, I was sitting in a car now. I could see fire in the side-view mirror, but I couldn't shake off what had just happened.

"We'll come back for her, Edward, with backup" I heard Charlotte say. She was driving the car, and it felt like we were going very fast. "You won't do her any good if you die trying to be a hero. Think of how she'll feel then," she added.

I knew that was supposed to make sense, but nothing did.

Bella was a vampire, and I had left her behind.


	8. Preperations

A/N: _Hey there! I know there hasn't been an update in ages, but I'm back, baby. And writing again! I'm even updating my other story, Before I Do, soon – so make sure to watch for updates! Thanks so much for the patience, guys, __**I thank and appreciate**__ anyone who's awesome enough to stick by this story even with the lack of frequent updates!_

_Make sure to follow me on Twitter Morie312. Why should you? You'll get fun updates and teaser lines before everyone else! Plus, I'm cute :P._

_Thanks for reading! Please review with any thoughts/criticism/favorite bits!_

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Twilight.

* * *

**Chapter 7: Preperations.**

_Edward's POV_:

I woke up on a bed. A strange bed, and a stranger situation – waking up somewhere, not being able to recall just what happened before you fell asleep, or how you got there.

From what I could tell I was in a hotel room, and I could faintly remember driving there, but everything was in bits and pieces, like every time I fell asleep created another black hole in my memory.

Having a human mind was exhausting.

I sat up on my elbows and looked around, noticing the full glass of water that was thankfully sitting on the nightstand. Thankfully, because my mouth was dry as hell. I reached for the glass, but somehow it slipped from my hand and fell onto the carpet, spilling the water but not breaking.

"Edward?" I heard Charlotte calling from the bathroom. She quickly appeared with a worried look on her face. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, sorry," I said as I sat up and picked up the glass. "Just dropped the glass. Where are we? Why can't I fucking remember anything?" I asked, rubbing my eye.

She sighed and sat next to me. "You fell asleep on the drive here. You've been falling in and out of sleep ever since. Why you don't remember… I guess that's normal for a human, if he's very tired."

"Yeah, I think I was," I said, rubbing my temples now.

"Does your head hurt?" she asked in alarm, placing her hand on my forehead. I moved backwards.

"Bella," I suddenly remembered the situation we were in, ignoring Charlotte's concerns about my head and getting up.

"Edward, what are you doing?" she asked, getting up as well.

I looked around the room. "Trying to find my pants, so I can get the hell out of here and find her."

"You're not going anywhere yet," she warned, crossing her arms.

I located my jeans, tossed at the foot of the bed, and went to pick it up. "Look, I really appreciate everything and all. However – and I say this with all due respect – you're not the boss of me, Charlotte." In the meantime, I managed to put the jeans on and button up.

"Yes I am!" she said, disgruntled, and then shook her head. "I mean, I know I'm not, but I do have a plan. One that might actually get us out alive from this mess."

"Oh, I have a plan," I said adamantly. "Getting Bella back."

"Yeah?" she asked, raising her eyebrow. "And what are you going to do for money? Food?"

I sighed, not replying. She raised good questions. I still wasn't used to being human, and I had forgotten that I actually need to eat, change clothes, things like that.

"We need backup, Edward," she said, shaking her head. "Otherwise I really don't see how the two of us can handle the two of them."

"_It's not the two of them_," I snapped at her. "It's us, and Bella, against that… vampire, whoever he is," I said. "Bella's not _with him_."

"Okay, fine," she said. "We still need backup. Do you have any way of contacting your family?"

I could've called Carlisle, and the Cullens would be there as soon as they could. "I don't want to get them involved in this," I said.

"Frankly… I don't think we have a choice," she said gravely.

She was right. We couldn't do this alone. I can't say that I didn't think through the whole de-vamping thing, but I never imagined I would feel quite this helpless as a human. I never imagined being so powerless while Bella was under threat. I just hoped my stupidity wouldn't cost her with her life.

* * *

_Bella's POV:_

I hadn't said a word to Nathaniel since we saw Edward. I knew it was stupid, I knew I needed to keep pretending to be on Nathaniel's side if I wanted this plan to work. But the sight of Edward made it that much harder to find strength to keep pretending.

I wanted to cry. But even if I weren't unable to cry – on the count of being a vampire – I was still in too much shock to cry. Everything was so strange, it all felt like a very real nightmare. Edward had left; my parents were dead, and I couldn't even grieve properly; I was turned into a vampire by their killer; and what just made it worse – Edward was somehow human again. I wanted so much for us to be able to be together, and I almost had it. But now this thing was separating us again.

I still had hope in me, though. Because Edward was human, and if that didn't happen by chance (which I couldn't imagine it did), then he still wanted me. Maybe this time I could change _him_ back, and we could finally be together. This inspired me to go on with my plan.

"I'm sorry, Nathaniel," I said, head hung in shame as we sat side by side in the woods.

My words snagged his attention. He turned to me with a questioning look on his face. I continued. "For screwing it up. I can't believe I froze like that." I feigned disappointment with myself.

He weighed his words for a moment, and then nodded. "You couldn't have known he would be human. You were taken aback. I trust next time you would perform as you hoped. Too bad he has been warned now, though, which would make him difficult to find."

"No, no… he isn't suspecting me. I'm sure. He probably thinks you've kidnapped me," I said – realizing what I said as he chuckled, "and then forced me to come with you… as leverage. I bet he'd even come to my rescue."

_Please, God, don't let him be stupid enough to come without his family and get himself killed for me_.

Nathaniel looked surprised by my words. "I haven't thought of that… my Bella, you are brilliant," he said, smiling widely and wrapping an arm around my shoulder.

A chill coursed through my body.

"Of course, he wouldn't be able to find us," he then said lightly.

I wondered about Alice. Why hasn't she been able to see me? Or see Nathaniel? She couldn't even see that I'd been kidnapped; she said she'd been _told_ about it. Then I remembered Nathaniel's powers. If he comes to contact with a vampire who has powers, he becomes immune to it forever. But where would Nathaniel meet Alice? And when?

"Good thing I've got my own way of finding him," he added. I figured I wouldn't want to know how, even if he wanted to tell me.

"If you always had a way of finding him, then why did you need me?" I asked, hoping I'm not getting myself killed here.

He laughed. "I never really needed you, beautiful," he winked at me. "You were just… fascinating. A human with enough courage as to offer me the kind of _deal_ you did? Priceless. I just had to take you with me."

"Well... thanks," I said warily. _I guess_.

"Now there's just the problem of the girl," he returned to business.

"Girl? Wasn't she a vampire?" I asked, because I was unable to decide whether her eyes were green or yellow. Especially while frantically worrying about Edward being human, and coming out of the house with another woman. A gorgeous woman, at that.

"Oh no," he shook his head. "She was definitely human, and I do suspect… witch."

"_Witch_?"

_What the hell?_

He nodded. "There aren't many, but they do exist. Besides, only a witch could do that to us… paralyze us like that," he said, suddenly seeming furious. I suspected he might want to get his own personal revenge on this witch girl.

Then something occurred to me. "Could she have been the one who…?" I said, unable to finish the sentence. It was way too weird.

"Turned him back into a pathetic little human?" he asked, seemingly amused.

I just nodded.

"Probably. Does it upset you?"

"What, that he's human, or that she was the one who turned him back?"

"That he changed back to be with _her_," he said, catching me off guard.

What if Edward _did_ change back to be with her, and not me?

"I guess it does, then," he sighed heavily, the expression on his face hardening.

"No," I said, fumbling for words. "It just… pisses me off even more, you know? He leaves me, and then goes off with that Denali bitch, and then what? A witch? He's going to pay for this."

Nathaniel didn't say anything for a few minutes, his expression remaining the same. I was just about ready to say goodbye to my current life, when he suddenly smiled to me.

"Well then, we will punish him the way he rightfully deserves," he said, as if trying to cheer me up. What scared me even more was the thought that he had spent the past few minutes thinking of ways to punish Edward. "And you don't have to worry, Bella… I'll never do that to you."

_Shit_.

He was looking at me, sort of admiringly. How delusional must he had been. I felt disgusted with myself for letting him think for one second that there was actually something between us – between me and the one who murdered my family, who was planning to murder the man I loved.

I just whispered, "thank you," and went about staring at the ground in shame.

"Come on, let's move," he said after a while of sitting quietly, pulling me from my own self-deprecating thoughts.

I nodded and got up. "Where are we going?"

"There's someone who can assist us in finding them, we just have to find him, first."

We had to move at human speed, which was sufficiently slow enough for the Cullens to find Edward in the meantime. We were looking for this man – vampire – Bradford Lazaro. First we got into Manchester, then found a phone book and went to the address registered there. It was nothing but old ruins of what used to be a pretty large house.

Next we went into the local police station. I stayed outside, as I was ordered to do.

_Freaking vampires_, I thought. _They think they can just decide everything for you_.

Of course, I was now one of them, and had a little more muscle. But just as I was trying to find a reason as to why I shouldn't kick Nathaniel's sorry ass, he came out, wearing a widespread grin on his face. Then it occurred to me. How can a commoner get information about another civilian from a police officer? Probably by using his mysterious powers – _that's_ how. He probably could glamour humans like those vampires on television. _Ugh._

The new location we got seemed like the right place. I was again instructed to wait, and my patience was nearing its endpoint. I couldn't wait to get this over with; to finally find Edward and figure everything out. Figure _us_ out. So the sooner Nathaniel gets Edward's location out of that friend of his, the better.

And it _was_ sooner. Nathaniel came out of the building after approximately five minutes. He was fucking smiling again.

"Alright then," he said with a pleased note. "Let's have a look-see, shall we?"

It took about ten seconds for my facial features to change from furrowed brows and a wrinkled forehead into wide eyes and a gaping mouth. He was doing something; his hands were pressuring his temples, his eyes were closed and moving, searching. He was tracking Edward.

_He can copy other vampires' gifts temporarily when he touches them – permanently if he kills them_, Tanya's words echoed in my brain.

He wasn't getting information out of anyone. He was getting powers.

The scariest thing, though? Who knew how many powers he had already stolen, how many he had killed for it? How powerful he was?

I was leading a monster straight to my awaiting beloved ones – the only loved ones I had left.

* * *

_Edward's POV:_

I woke up again, on the same hotel room bed. I must had dozed off for some time, exhausted from being human, exhausted from worrying. I had called Carlisle that morning, telling him everything. My family already knew Bella was a vampire, apparently. He said he would explain when they got here tonight, and that I should remember to eat. Fucking _eat_. Who could care about that, when Bella was in danger?

I groaned quietly, rubbing my eyes, and looked around me. The room was empty, but I could see Charlotte on the terrace, sitting on a chair with her legs folded up to her knees, unmoving. I slowly got up from the bed, wanting to check on her. Then I decided to make her some tea first, instead. Tea always calmed her, as I learned from our nightly conversations during these past weeks.

I brought the tea with me, sitting down in the chair next to her. She was staring blankly into the distance, her eyes and face wet from very recent tears. I offered her the mug, which she accepted with a small smile, but it just served for something her hands held while she continued to cry her eyes out. I took the mug from her hands and placed in on the small table in front of us, and then pulled her so that her head would rest on my chest. She cried even harder, then.

"Everything has blown up," she said between strangled tears. "My entire house, my books, a lifetime of work." She pulled away from me and wiped her tears with both her hands. "A lifetime."

It occurred to me that if it weren't for me, none of that would've happened to her. She would still have her life. All I had done is taking. I'd used her talent to find a way to be human again, lived in her house, berated her for not doing it fast enough, and eventually got everything she had taken away from her.

Like many things, this was on me. And my human feelings flooded me like a river. Everything was more intense as a vampire – except for human feelings. Those definitely belonged to humans. Guilt especially.

"I'm sorry," I said. It was lame, but it was all I could think of while the feelings of guilt overwhelmed me.

"I didn't have to help you," she said in defeat. "Frankly, I just wanted some interest to my pathetic life. And it fucking got interesting," she chuckled humorlessly as she wiped the rest of her tears.

"You helped me because there's good in you," I said. Her expression turned serious. And surprised, like no one has ever told her that.

Just then, my stomach grumbled like it hasn't in a century. She looked at me with an amused expression.

"I guess I'm hungry, then," I said. After all, I hadn't eaten at all since becoming human again, and Carlisle was right; I needed energy.

She laughed. "Come on," she said. "Let's get some food in you. Wouldn't want you to die of hunger before we even start fighting."

I laughed and shook my head. "We wouldn't want that."

We ordered room service, omelets with vegetables inside and a side salad, for lots of proteins and vitamins to keep us going. We also had pancakes with strawberries. And whipped cream – my god, whipped cream. It was amazing – I had forgotten how much so. I had forgotten what it was like to eat regular food and not find it disgusting. She had to rein me in before I ate _her_ food as well.

"If you're going to eat this much every day, you'll have to start exercising," she said. "Or Bella might not go for you anymore."

I knew she was kidding, and that I was supposed to give her a wise-ass comment back, but she hit a sensitive spot; what if Bella didn't want me anymore? What if she wouldn't forgive me for leaving her, even if she knew why? What if…

_No,_ I told myself with conviction, _she isn't with him. She would never try to kill me, even if she hated me. Bella couldn't hurt a fly._

"Sorry," she said. "That was probably the wrong thing to say."

"No, no, I was just wrapped up in thoughts. Don't worry, even if I get fat, I'd still have my charm and oozing sexuality," I grinned.

"No doubt," she nodded. "By the way – you have spinach stuck between your teeth."

I immediately closed my mouth and tried getting it out with my teeth, and then my finger.

"Oozing sexuality, sure," she mumbled.

After the meal, we rested on the couch. We were too full to talk, so we just sat down quietly and watched re-runs of old shows.

That's when Carlisle called.

"We're in an old woodland area, near the hotel," he said. "It's behind the parking lot, it's called Century Park."

"They're coming, soon," I heard Alice say in the background worriedly. "They know where we are."

_How would they know?_ I shook my head. It didn't matter at the moment.

"Why a woodland?" I asked.

"Well, it's pretty much secluded, so no one's likely to pass by and see us… or worse, get hurt."

"Good thinking," I said. "We'll come down."

"Maybe you shouldn't," he hesitated.

He was worried. "Don't be ridiculous, Carlisle."

"Edward, you're _human_. Do you remember how desperately you wanted to protect Bella when she was human? How fragile she was?"

"I'm not fragile. I'm fighting. If anything happens to any of you, I have no point in living anyway," I said adamantly. This caused Charlotte to look at me wide eyed, like she thought I was suicidal or something.

He sighed. "I can't force you to stay behind, but think about the risk. You might even pose as threat to Bella's life."

"That's the last thing I'll be," I said, getting up to put shoes and a jacket on, and signaling Charlotte to do the same.

"You're not being rational."

"I am being rational," I said. "I'm the one he wants."

* * *

"Edward!" Esme called out and wrapped her arms around me once we got there. Then she pulled back. "You are the most stubborn, pig headed…"

"Mom, will you relax already?" Emmett pled. "We've got this." He and Rosalie grinned to one another.

Alice almost ran into me, hugging me tightly. A little too tightly.

I coughed. "Alice, you can't hug a human like that."

"Oh!" she let go. "Sorry." She still seemed more worried than amused, and so did Jasper, who was probably overwhelmed with everyone's concerns.

Carlisle rested his hand on my shoulder and nodded his greeting silently.

It hit me that this was the first time that I've seem my family without being able to read into their thoughts.

"Ahem," I heard from behind me. "I'm, uh… Charlotte. The witch," she lifted her hand as if to say hello.

"Thank you for saving our son," Esme said, immediately giving her a hug. She seemed very emotional today.

"Oh," Charlotte said in surprise. "You -you're welcome."

"Edward, you need to know what we're up against," Alice said carefully, constantly looking at Jasper. "That vampire who tried to kill you was James' brother, Nathaniel. You were right when you said it's you he wants; for killing James."

"How do you know all this?" I asked.

Alice looked out of words, so Carlisle stepped in. "Alice has… a history with Nathaniel."

I looked at her, and she looked down in what seemed like shame. I'd have to hear the whole story later. If I survive this.

"It doesn't matter," Jasper said, gathering Alice to stand by his side. "What matters is, he's powerful. He's got more than one talent and we can't exactly know what his abilities are."

"Telekinesis, for one. And he's immune to all of our abilities," Alice said.

Rosalie tightened her lips. "I'm not even sure all this is worth the risk. All this for Bella? For all we know, she's _with_ him."

"Yes, all this for Bella," I nearly growled, obviously agitated by her. "And she's not with him."

"What, you're a tough guy now, Mr. 'I wanna be human'?" she said, probably pleased with herself for being stronger than me for once.

"You want the same thing, Rosalie. I've heard you think it," I said unfairly. But she was implying that Bella didn't matter. So I guess all was fair.

"You heard Alice," Carlisle told Rosalie. "It's Edward he wants; not Bella. She's only pretending to want to kill Edward so she can bring Nathaniel to us."

"Either way, Bella is family," Esme added.

"Guys, shut up," Alice said, effectively quieting everyone down while her eyes scanned an image in her head.

Finally, she looked up at us with the most horrified expression.

"They're here."


	9. Surprise

_A/N: We meet again! – hopefully. Here's another chapter, brought to you with blood, sweat and tears. Well, mostly typing, eye-rubbing, and sighing. I hope you enjoy reading it, and that you take the time to let me know if you liked it, and if you didn't!_

_You guys who are reading this are all amazing! __**Special thanks to**__: the lovely Janna, Sujari6 and teambellaedward._

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight and any of the character, except for Charlotte. I bloody _own_ that woman.

* * *

**Chapter 8: Surprise.**

It was so strange, knowing Bella was coming but not being able to smell her distinctive scent, the one that made my throat burn with thirst and the rest of me burn with lust. But she _was_ coming now, and all I felt was terrified; if something happened to her, or anyone in my family, I would have no one to blame but myself.

"Edward, take this –" Charlotte whispered, shoving one of the darts in my hand, and closing it. "Just in case."

I nodded, and turned to look solemnly at the patch of trees Alice, and now everyone else, was looking towards. We were sitting ducks, but I could think of no other way to handle this. And I knew was Carlisle was thinking. He had Bella. We had to negotiate.

"And try to stay on the down low," I heard her whisper, and then sigh.

There was a slight shift in the wind when they finally emerged. Bella, looking strange with red eyes and yet ravishing in her smooth, pale skin and delicate features. And Nathaniel, not looking as fierce, but more like someone bored, strolling through the park in the afternoon.

"Ah, the Cullens," Nathaniel smiled eerily when they stopped in front of us. "My dear Cullens. I've heard a many great things about you."

However weird that guy was, it wouldn't even register with me – because I couldn't tear my eyes away from Bella, and she couldn't look away either. I could read the fear in her gaze, and something else; something desperate. Something that resembled the way I felt seeing her.

"I see you've all gathered," he continued. "To protect your family member, no doubt."

"We're hoping there won't be any need to protect anyone," Carlisle said calmly.

Nathaniel's eyes shifted immediately to the person standing next to Carlisle – Alice. She gasped, slowly clinging to Jasper on her other side.

He remained his smile. "Alice, my love!" he called. "Why, I haven't seen your face in literally _ages_."

Jasper narrowed his eyes, his arm wrapped around Alice's neck protectively.

"Oh, don't worry," he told him. "I am well over your little girlfriend. In face, I have one of my own now," he said, wrapping an arm around Bella, who shivered in response.

At that moment, I couldn't stay on the down low. I couldn't stay calm. I couldn't even remember my newfound limits, the ones that came with being human.

I just launched at him, trying to stick the dart Charlotte gave me into his neck, but instead I found myself airborne, with Nathaniel's hand wrapped around my neck. I grasped his hand with both of mine, as the dart dropped to the earth.

"Don't you fucking _touch_ her," I spat out in between gasps.

_He can't fucking touch her._

He laughed humorously. "Well, see… I already have."

I groaned, trying to breathe. If he had wanted to, he would've already choked me. But he enjoyed making me twist under his hand, under his words. I turned my eyes to Bella, but she just looked at me in fear.

"That's enough," I heard Esme say from behind me. "Let him go."

"Not likely," he said. "This is the one we want. We have no quarrel with the rest of you. The rest of you go quietly, and none of you will get hurt."

_The one _we_ want. So he really thinks Bella's with him, doesn't he?_

"Now _that's_ unlikely," Emmett said.

"How about you, Blondie? Huh?" he turned to Rosalie, as if knowing she would be the one who would care the least about me. "One family member for the rest. That's a pretty good deal, isn't it?"

There was a pause, after which she said, "Let him down now, asshole, or there will be consequences."

"I'm ready for consequences," he said, tightening the grasp on my neck. I coughed, fighting for every breath. When I felt lightheaded, when things were starting to spin, that's when I saw Bella move.

She was faster than I had been as a vampire, or at least that's how she seemed to my human eyes. The next thing I knew, I was on the ground and so was Nathaniel, beneath Bella – who had him by the neck now.

"You… you're protecting him? But you're mine," he said, looking at her with true grief. Like he had been betrayed.

"I was never, and would never be yours," she said back in contempt, tightening her hand on his neck. "You're insane," she raised her voice to a near shout. "You killed my parents, you fucking, lunatic!"

_Her parents?_

"Bella," I whispered, more to myself, because it killed me, how much she must have been devastated by it. _I_ was devastated by it. She looked like she was going to finish him, and I wouldn't blame her for one bit of it.

Though it all turned out to be a mistake, because my whisper distracted her, and Nathaniel took this moment to throw Bella off of him, tossing her against a tree.

"Bella!" I yelled out, running towards her.

"I'm fine," she said as she got up, her eyes set on launching at Nathaniel again, but he had already managed to grab Alice from behind and move back away from everyone.

"So _have_ you missed me?" he asked her, sniffing her cheek slowly. Her face twisted with disgust.

Jasper came at him, but as if foreseeing what he would do, he fended him off without even laying a hand on him; with only a wave. Then he looked at him intensely, and now, all of a sudden, Jasper was attacking Emmett.

_Fuck, what else can this guy do?_

Emmett, who was just as surprised as I was, was busy now trying to hold Jasper without hurting him, with his hands behind his back… which kind of reminded me of old times when we used to wrestle. But that didn't matter at the moment.

I looked over at everyone else. Carlisle and Esme were somehow locked in place, unable to move. He must've had some limit on his powers, though, because Rosalie and Bella were still free to move. Charlotte was nowhere to be seen. I couldn't blame her for running; she was just as fragile as I was, with much less to fight for.

Rosalie made her move then, launching at him from behind and ripping his hand off – the one that was holding Alice – with her teeth. There was a horrible breaking noise, and he shouted out.

"Nobody calls me Blondie," she seethed as he staggered, clutching his bloody shoulder. His grasp on everyone's mind must've slipped, because Jasper stopped attacking Emmett, and Carlisle and Esme were free to move again.

Then Nathaniel cried again, which would've made me ridiculously happy if it weren't for the fact that his arm was slowly growing back to its place.

I wasn't sure if it was because no one was sure how to respond – or if he just regained his control over them, but Nathaniel was free and going for me again. He was walking, at human speed.

"You killed my brother," he fumed as he walked towards me. "And as long as you're alive, I'll never have Bella."

"You'll never have Bella anyway," I said, not even trying to get away from him.

Bella growled at that moment, throwing herself at Nathaniel again, who fended her off easily again. He moved his hand in the air, and Bella was stuck in her place, her hands locked behind her back.

"Get away from him, psycho!" she screamed at him. She was absolutely stunning. I didn't even care if anything happened to me, as long as the last thing I saw was _her_.

"Shut. Up. You traitor. Of a bitch," he growled slowly, looking at her fiercely.

My heart pounded. It occurred to me that I was going to die, and Bella was either going to be next, or she would be Nathaniel's object of obsession for the rest of her life.

"Now, I'm gonna need you to watch this," he said to Bella, smiling now, and then turned to kill me.

It happened in seconds; Nathaniel's hand grabbed my neck, his other hand pressed against my chest as if wanting to penetrate it and rip my heart out, I felt pain, my eyes closed, everything froze.

When my eyes opened again, I saw Nathaniel standing in front of me, frozen, and then releasing me and kneeling to the ground, grasping his face in his hands. As he fell, I saw Charlotte standing behind him with a syringe in her hand.

"What did you do?" I whispered to her.

When Nathaniel looked up again, his eyes were a bright blue.

He was human.

I looked back at Charlotte. "What did you do?" I asked loudly, harshly.

Of course, the answer was obvious to me. She had injected him with the rest of the human serum, stripping him of his powers, but also stripping Bella and me of our only chance to be together forever. The formula was lost, exploded along with her house. Bella couldn't be turned human, and I couldn't be bitten again.

"No…" Nathaniel whispered, looking at his hands, at himself.

"Edward, the serum wouldn't work on a newborn anyway," Charlotte fended for herself.

"We would've _waited_!" I yelled at her.

"Edward," Bella rushed over to me, now free of Nathaniel's mind tricks. "She just saved your life," she said, holding my face between her hands. Somehow being between her now cold hands calmed me. Bella was safe, that was what's important.

"Thank you," she told her. I turned around in time to see Charlotte nod to her.

Carlisle stepped forward, standing in front of Nathaniel. He was no threat to anyone anymore this way. If anything, we were a threat to him.

"This can't be," he whispered to himself in disbelief. "Don't – don't kill me, please! Bella? Alice!" he yelled out desperately.

"I feel sorry for you," Alice said to him quietly, and Jasper rubbed her shoulder gently.

"Nathaniel. You have a choice," Carlisle told him, offering him a hand to get up. He took it, looking like a lost puppy. "Either you stay and we'll kill you right now," he continued, "or you can run for the hills and _never_ come back."

I figured Carlisle would want to spare his life.

"No," I said firmly. "This is Bella's choice."

Everyone looked at me with puzzlement. Bella too.

"Bella," I finally spoke to her directly, and I was speaking to _my_ Bella. She gazed back at me. "He killed your parents. He wanted to kill you."

"Actually, she was the only one I didn't-"

"Shut the fuck up," Emmett cut Nathaniel off before he could finish.

"I know you're not a killer, Bella," I continued quietly, so that only she could hear. "But if you say the word, I'll do it for you."

She let a heavy breath in, and then out, looking at me all the while. "You're not a killer either, Edward," she whispered back to me.

Then she spoke up. "Nathaniel," she said, turning his full attention to her. "You better run right now." As serious as she sounded – if I were Nathaniel, I'd run like the fucking wind.

And so he did.

I was still looking in the direction of the path he took, when Bella grabbed my face in her hands and pressed her lips to mine, fiercely. I reacted quickly as one of my hands flew to her face, the other resting on her hip now. Don't get me wrong – I _was_ completely shocked by her actions, but my bodily instincts just kicked in where my mind wouldn't work.

She felt amazing against me.

My lips moved along with hers in perfect sync, despite the recent changed to both of our bodies. Her cold lips made my own lips feel as if they were burning. I pressed her firmly against me, forgetting myself and everything else. She held on to me tightly – a bit too tightly – but I didn't mind.

The most amazing thing of all was knowing that she still wanted me. That I hadn't driven her away and lost her because of my foolish notions. If she was kissing me now, there was still a chance for her to take me back.

"Alice," I vaguely heard Jasper say.

_Oh, right. We're surrounded by family._

I unwillingly detached my lips from Bella's, as I remembered our current situation.

Bella and I both looked at Alice, who was looking far more worried than she should have, since Nathaniel was gone. Everyone looked worried now, and Charlotte looked more upset than anyone.

"What is it?" Carlisle asked her. "What did you see?"

"It's the Volturi," she said fearfully. "They know about the witch. They're coming after her."

"What, _now_?" I asked in alarm. I couldn't let them get their hands on her. I knew there was no chance they'd let her live; not after what she did to piss off Felix.

"Oh, _balls_," Charlotte said, making Emmett crack up. Even Bella chuckled softly, standing next to me.

"Witches are _awesome_," he said.

"No, not now," Alice answered, ignoring the idiots. "They haven't decided yet. They don't want to pick a fight with all of us… or at least not yet."

"She comes with us, then," I said decisively, looking at her.

She shook her head. "No."

"Well, I wasn't really asking, was I?"

"I can't bring them to you guys," she said. "That would be preposterous. And besides, I couldn't impose myself."

"You wouldn't be an imposition at all," Esme said, smiling. "You're very welcome."

"You know, it's me they want, I should just confront them and tell them I had every right to save my friend's life," she said.

"They're probably pretty pissed about you turning Edward human, too," Alice said. "They've always wanted him to join them because of his gift."

"I'll reason with them," she shrugged. "Offer them secrets of the trade, perhaps."

"You really think that would work? I mean, you've heard the stories from your insider, Gianna, didn't you?" I said agitatedly. "Who, by the way, is lucky if she's alive right now. _Don't be stupid_, Charlotte."

"I'm just not interested in risking your lives on my behalf," she said.

"He's right," Bella interfered. "You should come with us. You saved Edward's life, I understand more than once. You should come with us."

She took a long moment before she finally sighed in defeat. "Okay."

I smiled. Bella was a miracle worker. My urge was to throw my arm around her shoulder casually, give her a kiss. But things weren't completely back to normal yet. We still had so much to discuss before that could happen. Plus, I needed to apologize my ass off.

"It's settled, then," Carlisle wrapped up the discussion. "We all go back to Seattle."

Rosalie was looking less than pleased, which I couldn't say about her grinning husband.

"Glad you're okay, bro," Emmett said and stepped towards me as the family started scattering, tapping my shoulder roughly with a grin.

"So am I," Alice said. "Because now I can hurt you myself!" she scowled and punched my other shoulder. "Don't you ever do that to me again!"

"Ow! Alice, that hurt," I said, sounding much like a girl. Bella laughed.

"I don't care!" she said, crossing her arms and walking vampire speed towards Carlisle and Esme in the front.

I looked at Jasper questioningly, and he shrugged.

"You didn't let her see any of your decisions. That's like being impotent, in Alice's world."

"More like you had us all worried, running off and turning human," said Rose. "And yes, I said _us all_, stop looking at me funny!"

I laughed as she dragged Emmett ahead as well, leaving Bella and I to walk alone, side by side. I was so glad to have a little time to spend alone with her, even if it was only until we could get to a means of transportation, and even if we couldn't really talk about anything.

We looked at each other silently as we walked towards the road, but she seemed much less anxious. I could tell she was still a bit nervous, though – and so was I.

"I can't get used to it," she said, chuckling softly. I looked at her with scrunched eyebrows. "Your green eyes," she explained. "They're much… deeper than I imagined them in my head."

"And yours are-" I said without thinking, and then stopped. I didn't want to make her feel self conscious.

"Red," she completed the sentence for me, and smiled. "I'd have to wear sunglasses until I buy some new contacts."

I gathered up the courage to take her hand in mine, intertwining our fingers loosely. I almost expected her to blush like she did when she was human. She obviously didn't, but she did bite on her bottom lip for a moment, which made me grin like a kid.

During the time when we had been apart, I felt a lot of things concerning Bella. I'd cried about Bella, I'd angered because of Bella, I'd worried about Bella. But now I realized that mostly, I just _missed_ Bella.


	10. Edward

_A/N: Hey there! So, the story continues… time for Edward and Bella to find out what the other way around is like. Hope you like it and let me know in the reviews!_

_Thank you for reading this and being so awesome! __**Special thanks to**__: the amazing Janna and Sujari6._

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or (almost) any of the characters.

* * *

**Chapter 9: Edward.**

_Bella's POV_:

The Cullen house in Seattle was huge. It must have had three more bedrooms than their old house outside Forks, and two more baths. Looking around curiously reminded me of the first time Edward took me to see his family – the way I marveled at the beautiful design, and berated myself for expecting coffins and spider-webs. I was just as nervous, but much more aware of how nervous I was. It was amazing how, even as a vampire, I still managed to be totally awkward.

Everyone scattered quietly to their rooms and corners of the house, probably all exhausted. Carlisle and Esme showed Charlotte to her guest bedroom so she could get some rest. The guest bedroom in which she would be staying for an indefinite period of time.

I sighed internally. I wanted to be the amazing girlfriend – assuming I was even back in that position – and like the woman who saved Edward, be friends with her, even. But I can't say that wasn't difficult.

First off, she was gorgeous. And I mean _gorgeous_. Secondly, I could tell she had feelings for him, even if she was really good at hiding them. I saw the way she looked at Edward after our kiss in the forest… it was like she had been devastated. On the other hand, she didn't seem to want to cause any problems; she even refused to come and stay with us.

It was just then that my thoughts weighed in on me. _Come and stay with us_. I was staying at the Cullen's, and it wasn't because I was moving in with Edward relationship-wise. Besides them, I was all alone now. My parents were gone, and everyone else thought I was dead.

My parents were gone.

Something inside me threatened to crack, to completely break under this reality, as flashes from that night crept inside my head. But for some reason, even though I was safe now, I still couldn't bring myself to just let it break. I needed to stay strong for now. I needed to keep myself together.

"You seem wrapped up rather deep in your thoughts," Edward said as we reached his room. He was right. I hadn't even realized we were climbing up the stairs. "Do you want to talk about it?" He said, gazing at me with his piercing green eyes and running a hand through his messy hair. It made me thankful that I managed to get myself some contacts before we got to the house.

"We have a lot to talk about," I said, unsure how to start. "Let's, um, go inside?"

"Oh," he said, seeming a little jumpy for no reason I could tell. "Yeah, of course." He opened the door to his room, allowing me in before him.

The room seemed amazingly different than his old one. There was only one tiny window, for starters, and it was closed shut, including the blinds. His old room was consisted primarily out of windows. The colors were different, darker. There was a large bed in the center of the room, with piles of books scattered on it. Made sense, since it wasn't used for sleeping. I wondered if he had… entertained anyone. On that bed.

I shook that painful thought out of my head.

The only thing that really resembled his old room was the amount of CD's he had, organized perfectly in shelves. Edward loved music, and he was such a talented musician himself.

I heard the door shut behind Edward. As a human, merely looking around and taking in the scene would take a minute. As a vampire, it took about a second and a half.

"Read any good books lately?" I asked lightly, trying to break the weird tension between us.

"Sorry," he smiled and rushed to clear the bed of those books. "Truth is, I never really managed to concentrate on any of these."

I wondered what he meant by it, but didn't get into it. I wanted to talk about what mattered.

He sat down on the bed, and looked at me for a long moment. "Would you...?" he signaled with his head towards the bed.

"Yeah," I said, sitting next to him carefully.

I thought how as a human, my breath would be ragged right now, and my heart would be racing, or at least getting there. The thought made me notice that I could actually hear Edward's heartbeat. This complicated things a bit.

See, before in the woods, when Edward and I kissed – which I still didn't know what to think about, by the way – it was kind of torturous. And not in the old sense of how I wanted much more than kissing him but couldn't get it because Edward was such a prude. In the sense of how Edward smelled like the best thing I'd ever smelt in my life, and I wanted to… drink his blood. A bit. A lot.

It wasn't extremely hard to resist – I could control myself, but it was challenging; it made my throat dry and burning with thirst, and my senses go into overdrive, which only used to further fire up that kiss.

"This is weird," I finally said.

"Yeah, a little bit," he said, the corners of his lips twitching into a smile. "Bella, I need to tell you something," he seemed contemplated, looking down at his lap.

_Oh no, he's going to tell me of all the women he _did it_ with, isn't he?_

I nodded patiently, even though it took him _forever_. "Go ahead."

He sighed and turned to look back up at me as the words gushed out. "I am sorrier than you could ever imagine. I never meant to leave you. I thought I was protecting you. After what happened with Jasper on your birthday, I… Please, _please_ forgive me, Bella."

"I had a feeling that was the reason," I said quietly after a short pause, choosing not to share my (many) moments of self doubt with him for now. "And I have to say, there were days that I hated you for it. I hated that you were gone, I hated that you left me alone without a chance to choose my own future for myself," I said, unsure of how the words were coming out of my mouth so impulsively. We were dead silent a minute ago.

He nodded thoughtfully. "I, uh… I understand." He seemed crushed, but he didn't let me finish.

"But I never really hated you," I shook my head, biting my lip slightly. "I couldn't. I wanted to, but I guess hating you is not part of my repertoire," I gave him a small smile, and he returned one. "Life without you was… agonizing." I remembered all those days I spent going through the motions, not really feeling alive at all.

"I'm so sorry, Bella. I never meant for you to go through that. I just thought…" he looked at his lap again, running a nervous hand in his hair. "I just thought you'd move on, you know? Get over me, and move on, and live happily."

"Happily ever after?" I asked, smiling at him, even though he wasn't looking.

"Something like that," he replied softly.

"I don't think that's in my repertoire either. Getting over you," I said truthfully.

He looked at me now, solemn. "If it's any consolation, I spent most of the time without you curled up in a ball on the floor."

I laughed quietly, and he smiled. "Somehow I find that hard to believe," I said. I couldn't wrap my mind around the thought. Why would someone like him curl up in a ball over someone like me? It just didn't make sense.

"It may not be manly, but it is true," he said, as if hanging his head in shame.

"So you didn't…" I couldn't finish the sentence, so I gestured towards the bed with my head.

_Please say no, please say no, please say no_.

"No! God, no," he said in panic. "Bella, I'm not… _joking_ about this. All I could think about was you. If we would ever be together again. If I should just go back and screw everything else. If you would ever forgive me."

He face was suddenly so close to mine. His scent, along with the burning in my throat, was much stronger now. But I didn't focus on that. I couldn't. Not when his eyes locked into mine so fiercely, and I could hear his heart beating rapidly enough for both of us, now.

I swallowed hard, but it only served to worsen the stinging in my throat. And on top of that, he was making me dizzy, too.

My eyes closed instinctively once our noses touched, and the distance between us was closing in a manner that was _excruciatingly_ slow, dissimilar to the kiss we shared beforehand. I could feel his warm breathing on my face, sending out a thousand little spikes through my skin. His sweet breath was intoxicating, if possible, even more so than before.

Then his lips touched mine, grazing them with unbearable lightness, when a loud knock sounded at the door, pushing us apart.

"Yes?" Edward asked, licking his lips, and I took the moment to breathe out the tension.

Esme opened the door, looking a bit uncomfortable as she took in the situation. "I was just wondering if Bella was, erm, staying here with you, or should I make up the other guest bedroom for her," she said.

"Umm," Edward said, unsure how to respond. I wasn't sure myself.

"I'll come back later," Esme said hurriedly and closed the door again, leaving us to figure it out on our own first.

"Aaand we're back to awkward," I said once she had closed the door.

"Tell me what happened," Edward said abruptly, like he was thinking it for a long time and curiosity was burning in his bones too much to care if his question fitted in the conversation. "With James' brother. After we had left."

I sighed and closed my eyes, gathering up strength to talk about it.

When I opened my eyes again, and was met with Edward's burning eyes, the words began to flow. I told him about the night he killed my parents. How I found Renee in a pool of her blood. How I saw Charlie's neck twist in the stranger's hands. Edward held me as I shook in his arms, crying without tears. Only with him I could fall apart without completely breaking into pieces. He kept me safe.

He kept me safe while I told him about waking up in that cold room, bound to a chair. Being scared out of my mind. How Nathaniel told me he wanted to revenge James. How I realized that the only choice I had was to negotiate my own life.

"I had to pretend that I did hate you. That I wanted to kill you," I smiled sadly to him. "That if he changed me, I could help him find you."

"You got what you've always wanted, then," he smiled sadly back.

I shook my head. "That wasn't what I wanted. The only reason I even wanted to be changed was so that I could be with you. And I most definitely didn't want someone like Nathaniel to do it."

He nodded attentively. "Were you… in a lot of pain? During the change, that is?" he almost winced when he asked.

"I got through it," I said, not wanting to cause him anymore sorrow. "I contacted Alice when we got to Denali, and we came up with the plan to fight him off together."

"Wait, Denali?" he asked, furring his eyebrows. I couldn't stop staring at his beautiful face. The face I'd missed so much, and never allowed myself to think about.

"I remembered you talking about your friends there. I had no idea where else to take him," I said, and tried to man up and ask what I had wanted to ask him. "What were you doing in Denali?" I asked quietly, nibbling my bottom lip again nervously.

He sighed, looking down at his hands. "Bella, you need to understand something," he said, making my heart effectively drop. "When I left you, I was just as broken up about it as you tell me you were. I treated my family like dirt. I wanted to go back so much, but I didn't want to risk your life anymore. And one night I was reading a book. It was a history book about witches, their abilities and their relationship with other… mythical creatures," he smiled slightly as I listened attentively. "Such as vampires. It had a tale about a witch who turned a vampire to a human man, in order to kill him. I didn't know if it was in any way possible, but I remembered Tanya was the one who gave me the book. So I figured I'd give it a shot." He looked back at me now. "For us."

This was insane. We had both wanted to become something else to be with each other, and now we had just turned the tables around.

"Tanya told me to go to the Volturi, that they might, _might_, help me find a witch. _That_ they definitely didn't. But one of them did try to kill me," he said, chuckling.

"How-how is that funny?" I asked, panicked. "What did he do to you?"

"He didn't hurt me or anything. He almost chocked me to death. And then Charlotte came along and saved me."

He told me about Charlotte's spy with the Volturi, about going back to her house and waiting impatiently for her to find him a way to be human again. How he did his best to hide his decision from Alice, knowing the Cullens wouldn't let him go through with it. And how the minute he was changed back, I showed up as a vampire.

I laughed. "To say that was shocking would be a major understatement," I said, and then turned serious again. "I was afraid that you would think I was really trying to kill you."

"Bella, I would never believe something like that. Even if I knew for a fact that you hated me. You couldn't hurt anyone."

I smiled and rested my head on his shoulder gently. I was scared to harm him, now that he was human and fragile as I had been. Only now did I understand his concerns about me. Knowing Edward was vulnerable while we fought Nathaniel, it was the most helpless feeling I had in my life. Or afterlife.

"Besides, I knew you couldn't be _with_ him," he shook his head and took my hand in his, weaving our fingers together.

I bit my lip, unsure what to say. I knew I needed to tell him about how I let Nathaniel kiss me, think that I was his. But I couldn't bring myself to do it, afraid of how Edward would react. He would be devastated. I didn't want to hurt him. And more than anything, I didn't want to lose him again. So I said nothing for now, and hated myself for it.

"I was so determined to save you, I forgot that I needed to eat now," he said, and we both chuckled. I couldn't get used to how warm he was now. I wondered if I was unpleasantly cold to him.

"Well, don't get too used to being human," I said, lifting my head from his shoulder and smiling at him. "We need to get you changed back and immortal again."

His face turned severe again, as he weighed his words. "Bella," he started carefully, "I can't be changed back. If I get bitten… I'll die."

Shock hit me throughout my entire body. Shock, and anger. "So wait. You knew that if you get bitten you'll be dead, and you still came to fight Nathaniel?" I asked furiously.

"Are you mad?" he looked amused.

"Of course I'm mad!" I said, letting go of his hand in fear that I might crush it with my anger. "Have you no sense of self-preservation at all?" That sentence sounded familiar to me for some reason.

"Are you kidding me?" he asked incredulously.

"No, I am _not_ kidding you, Edward," I said agitatedly. How could he not see how dangerous it was?

"And this is coming from the girl who gets involved with vampires, because getting nearly killed by inanimate objects on a daily basis just doesn't cut it."

"_You're_ the reason I got involved with vampires in the first place!"

"I didn't force you to be with me. Actually, I recall doing quite the opposite – trying to scare you away," he said, now definitely amused.

I snorted. "You call _that_ trying to scare me? You followed me around and climbed up my window to watch me sleep."

"You just look so adorable in plaid pajamas," he said, grinning wickedly.

I laughed and shook my head at his words, and we fell into silence again.

"So what do we do now?" I asked. "Turn me into a human?"

I figured it was our only way of being together with the least chance that death would separate us untimely. If we were both human, we wouldn't need to be in supernatural danger. And even though the thought hurt, I figured if Edward didn't want me after all, I would have no desire to remain a vampire.

"Well, Charlotte injected the last of the human serum into Nathaniel, and since her house blew up with the formula…" he sighed heavily. "I guess we'll just have to ask her to try and remember how she made it the first time around."

"Too bad, though. I enjoy being stronger than you," I said, smiling cheekily.

"Well… I can always do this," he said, paused, and then started to tickle me senseless.

_What the hell? I'm still ticklish?_

I laughed out as he kept going until I was curled up on the bed, begging for his mercy. He stopped tickling and lay down next to me, facing me with a huge grin on his face. He tucked a misplaced strand of hair behind my ear, making me shiver slightly at his touch. We just lay there, looking at each other silently, touching each other's faces every once in a while. I had no idea how much time passed, but Edward was close to falling asleep when he pulled me closer to him.

"Bella?" he said softly, almost inaudibly.

I hummed in response.

"Do you think you could you ever forgive me? For everything that I've put you through?" His eyes felt like blazing flames, burning through me intensely. He still had so much power over me, it was almost scary.

"And before you answer," he added. "I think you should know that I love you, Bella. More than you will ever think you know. I will do anything for you."

My still heart soared, and I couldn't help but smile. He _did_ still love me. He _did_ still want me.

"Edward," I said. "There's nothing to forgive."

"Yes there is," he insisted.

"No, there isn't, Edward. How can I be mad at you, if everything you did was meant to keep me safe?" I smiled.

"Don't be stubborn, Bella, just forgive me," he seemed serious, agitated, and joking all at the same time.

"I can't forgive you if you didn't do-"

"Do you _want_ to be pinned down and tickled again?"

"Okay, I forgive you," I said quickly.

He chuckled and pulled me on top of him, as I let him shift me easily in his arms.

"You still haven't told me one thing, though," he said, his breath making me foggy again.

"What's that?" I asked hazily.

"Do you think you could ever love me again?" he asked, running his hand through my hair gently.

I shook me head at the absurdness of what he said. "And what makes you think that I ever fell out of love with you?"

I considered that for a moment. "Well, I guess you could say you kind of left me hanging when I just told you I love you," he said, smiling now.

"Really? Did I?" I asked, stalling the moment to tease him.

"Yes," he said, narrowing his eyes. I remained silent. "Well?" he asked impatiently.

"Well, what?"

He groaned.

I laughed. "Edward, don't be silly. I love you. I could never stop loving you."

He grinned brilliantly now, and then a huge yawn took over him.

I laughed. "You have got to get some sleep. I think we've been talking for hours."

"Will you stay with me?" he asked.

"Of course," I said, and rolled to my previous position, facing him. "I'll be the one watching you, this time."

He smiled. "Good night, Bella."

"Sweet dreams, Edward," I said, smiling back, and shut the light switch next to his bed as he closed his eyes.

He lay still in the dark with his eyes closed, and I listened to his quiet breathing.

"Say it again," he whispered.

"Don't push it," I replied playfully.

"Sorry," he said. "I love you, Bella."

Bastard. He knew I could never refuse him when he was being so sweet.

"I love you too, Edward," I whispered back softly. "Even if you are stubborn as hell."

He smiled for a moment, before he finally drifted to sleep.

* * *

_So, what did you think? They finally reunited! Please tell me your thoughts in the reviews – was it too much, too soon? Did you like it? Hate it? Do tell! :) thank you for reading!_


	11. Fall

_A/N: Okay, here it is! Another one. lol it took me forever, but I'm actually getting this chapter out in one of my busiest times, so I'm proud of myself!_

_Thanks__for__sticking__around__if__you__still__are!__And__for__being__so__awesome!__**Special**__**thanks**__**to**__:__the__amazing__Janna,__BellaMarieSwan112,_ _teambellaedward__and__MEA85.__Thanks__guys!_

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or (almost) any of the characters.

* * *

**Chapter 10: Fall.**

_Bella's__ POV_:

I spent the night watching Edward sleep. The irony of how our roles were now reversed did not escape me. I never understood what was so fascinating – as he called it – about watching me sleep. I was just a girl who laid there, eyes closed, mumbling embarrassing sentences every now and then, and probably snoring or drooling to add a little extra humiliation to the mix.

But now I realized there was more to it; the way Edward's eyes moved from side to side as he was dreaming, the way he sighed so sweetly every time he rolled over, and the way his chest rose and fell with his every breath. This was especially engaging, because watching him breathe, beat, live… it made me feel comforted. He was _alive_. And it also made me feel protective – like my sole purpose in this world was to make sure it stays that way. I needed him to be safe.

_Ohhhh…_

Let's just say that a lot became clear to me that night. Why Edward always acted the way he did. Why he risked himself to save my life even before we were friends. The way he constantly tried to protect me from the world – which was pretty much annoying, but I get it now.

It also became clear that he was trying his best to make sure I don't end up as dinner. Vampire hunger was the _worst_. I wasn't having much trouble before, when I was exposed to all these humans in South America, but now I was _feeling_ it. I wasn't sure if it was because, as Nathaniel said, I was still filled with my human blood, or because Edward smelled especially delicious to me. If you tried imagining the best dessert you've ever had, and the aroma coming out of it – you wouldn't even be close to what he smelled like to me.

And that wasn't the only thing I was battling regarding Edward. Oh, no. If I thought I was immensely attracted to him as a silly little human girl, I didn't know what I was talking about. Even as I watched him sleep, I was fighting the urge to stealthily remove our clothing and just sit on top of him, surprising him with th…

He opened his eyes, and I let out a small yelp of surprise, sitting up in alarm. He just started laughing.

"You scared me," I huffed, placing a hand over my heart only to remember it wouldn't be beating anymore.

"You know, Bella, for a vampire… you have pretty bad instincts," he chuckled.

"What, was I _supposed_ to know you were going to just open your eyes like that?"

"Have you ever seen _me_ scream like a girl when you wake up from a night's sleep?" he raised an eyebrow as he sat up in front of me, still grinning like an ass.

"I do not scream like a girl," I protested with a lie. "It was more of a gasp, really."

He chuckled again and shook his head. "It's okay. You look cute when you scream like a girl." It seemed like he was contemplating for a moment, before he drew a deep breath, a serious expression on his face. "Actually, you look beautiful."

His hair was wildly astray from his tossing and turning during the night, and his eyes were almost gleaming with green beneath his dark lashes.

"I, I look the same," I mumbled, almost wincing at my lack of smoothness.

_I look the same? Jesus…_

I swallowed hard, licking my lips as I did. It occurred to me that I'd never even seen Edward shirtless. And I wanted to. A lot. Vampire hormones were even stronger than my teen hormones. And as if that weren't enough, he chose that moment to tuck my hair behind my ear again, this time letting the tips of his fingers slightly caress the skin below my ear.

I nearly freaking _moaned_.

"I love waking up to you, you know," he said in a low voice. It didn't slip past me that his fingers lingered on my skin, playing with the neckline of my sweater on my collarbone.

"I love watching you sleep," I smiled meekly, trying not to stutter this time.

"Did I say anything embarrassing?" he asked, trying to suppress a smile.

I wished he _had_ said something embarrassing. God only knows how many times _I_ had said embarrassing things while he watched me sleep. Also, that unsuppressed smug smile of his.

"Just professed your undying love for me," I said lightly, trying to ease some of the tension that was building up.

"Nice try, but I don't talk in my sleep," he said with an easy smile. "But I did have dreams about you," he turned serious again, slowly leaning towards me.

"Y-you did? You had dreams? About me?" There was that stutter again.

He nodded. "I, uh… there was something I didn't get a chance to try last night," he nearly whispered now, and I realized my body unconsciously pulled towards his.

He moved forward cautiously, tilting his head slightly to the side as he did. His slowness was killing me, but I was afraid to move even in the slightest, worried that I might go into a vampire fit and bite his neck; his delicious scent was just overwhelming as he came closer.

Our lips finally pressed together after a moment that felt like forever, my cold marble against his warm, soft silk. At first I didn't allow myself to draw a breath. Edward, however, drew a deep one, and when he breathed out into me, I made the mistake of inhaling.

Apparently, Edward's human morning-breath? Superhumanly good.

It drove me into a frenzy, as my hands grabbed at his shirt and I deepened the kiss, relishing in his scent, his taste, his close proximity. He felt so amazing, and I'd missed him so fucking much.

I tangled my fingers in his hair as I propped myself up on my knees and then fully straddled him, fervently attacking his lips. We were both breathing heavily by now, but I could feel his heartbeat picking up, practically skyrocketing, as our tongues struggled together.

And suddenly, I was flat on my back on the bed and Edward's body was pressed to mine, and his hands were _everywhere_. Caution was thrown to the wind, and my defenses were slipping.

I realized I was close to somehow hurting him a short moment before it was too late.

I rolled him swiftly on his back and backed up to stand against the wall of his room, willing myself to realize that I needed to stay away from the man that I loved and wanted so badly, at least until I calm down.

He smiled crookedly. "This situation rings familiar."

"I'm sorry," I sighed; mostly mad at myself for my lack of control.

"I'm not," he said, amused. "Now you get to see _my_ side of things. Why I rarely let control slip around you. Why I always stopped us both every time things were heating up."

"I remember. Every freaking time," I said, with a possible bit of agitation in my voice.

"You have no idea how amazing it feels to finally be able to just… lose control around you, Bella," he said, getting up from the bed and walking towards me slowly.

I put my hand in front of me, signaling him to stop what he was doing before I'd lose it again, because he looked too sexy and sounded too alluring for his own good. Then I shook my head, trying to focus.

"No, Edward," I said. "I could've seriously hurt you. I could've broken you to pieces on a heated whim. I could've…" I stopped, unable to form those particular words that wanted to come out.

"Bitten me?" he asked, not seemingly troubled at all. "Drunk my blood and drained me dry?" he smiled.

"You have some sort of death wish I need to know about? A danger fetish, maybe?"

He laughed again.

"It's not funny," I said, crossing my arms against my chest.

"Bella, relax," he said, unwrapping my arms and taking them in his. "You'll get used to it. We'll find our way. Together. It just might take some time."

I sighed. He sounded so confident that we will, I couldn't help but believe him. "I guess we could do that," I said. "But just… stop laughing 'cause it's not funny."

"I know it's not funny," he said. "But you finally get to walk a mile in my shoes, and for once, I don't have to play responsible adult. It's kind of liberating, really," he said as he pulled my body to his, one hand circling my waist.

This coaxed a smile out of me; he looked like a mischievous little boy.

Since my superhuman urges subsided for now, I pulled his face – gently – to kiss his lips – _gently_. Edward stayed in his place, keeping the kiss PG for now for my benefit. His lips were so soft, I couldn't get over it.

"I love those lips," he smiled against my lips as he kept pecking them lightly. "_My_ lips."

I instinctively pulled away, struck by his words as reality hit my face like a tennis racket; I still hadn't told Edward about letting Nathaniel kiss me. He probably wouldn't be this affectionate towards me if he knew who had claimed these lips, _his_ lips.

He would probably hate me. Feel disgusted by me – the girl who let her parents' killer kiss her. Hell, I was disgusted with myself, why wouldn't _he_ be?

On the other hand, I couldn't keep hiding this from him. He deserved to know. I just needed some time to figure out what to do.

I tried to adjust my facial expression to one who wouldn't point to shame and revulsion, and put on a smile. "I think we should get some food in your system before you pass out or something," I said, trying to shake the nerves as I spoke. "When was the last time you ate, anyway?"

He looked puzzled for a second, but then just shook his head. "Uh, I think the last time was at that gas station we stopped at yesterday, on the way back from the airport."

I frowned. "Great. Now Esme's gonna think I'm a terrible girlfriend who doesn't feed her boyfriend."

He laughed. "Okay, okay. I just need to do a few… human things, before we go downstairs," he said.

Obviously, Edward had to brush his teeth now, and shower – even though I was sure he'd smell great either way.

"Okay, you go tinkle," I said, chuckling.

We finally descended downstairs, after a freaking _long_ morning shower Edward took. Really, the world's natural water resources were better off with Edward as a vampire, because when he was human, he showered longer than most girls I knew.

I walked downstairs behind Edward, feeling a bit self conscious as everyone stared at us and tried to look nonchalant at the same time. Even Carlisle, who was reading a newspaper in the living room, looked at us.

But the worst pair of eyes was Charlotte's. She looked utterly distraught. I wondered if I should start worrying about her liking Edward.

"Goood morning," Esme chanted with a smile. She was holding a pan in one hand and a spatula in her other hand, just about to place something on Charlotte's plate. Alice, Rosalie and Emmett were sitting at the dining table with her.

"Morning," I mumbled awkwardly, smiling back at Esme.

"It's about time, sleepyhead." Alice called with a smile. Jasper nodded at us.

"Edward, come sit, I've made you and Charlotte my famous banana-nut pancakes. And when I say famous, I mean they were in the early 20th century," she laughed, while placing a few pancakes on Charlotte's plate. "I'll go get you some."

"Thanks, mom," he smiled and sat down at the table. I did the same.

"She seems chipper," Charlotte chuckled, cutting into her pancake.

"Esme doesn't get many chances to cook for people, let alone her own son," Edward said.

Esme came back to the living room with a plate stacked with pancakes and syrup for Edward.

"Wow, this smells amazing," Edward said.

"Wait until you taste them," Esme replied and sat down as well. "Oh, Charlotte, I forgot to ask! Did you sleep okay in the guest room?"

"I slept great, thanks," she said in between bites. "And these pancakes are extraordinary. You really didn't have to go through all this trouble for me. The chocolates on the pillow. The Potpourri in the bathroom," she said, seemingly embarrassed by all the attention.

"Don't worry about it. She loves it," Emmett reassured her.

"It's true," Esme laughed softly.

"Oh my god, mom, these pancakes are _so__good_," Edward nearly moaned, with food still in his mouth.

_Should I feel bad that this is turning me on a little bit?_

"I'm glad you enjoy them," Esme said proudly.

"Just enjoy them with your mouth closed, would you?" Rosalie said, only half jokingly. She was right, though. Clearly Edward had forgotten his old aged eating manners.

"So Bella," Alice started, and I could already see where this was going. "How did you like watching Edward sleep, for once? Edward used to watch her sleep all the time when she was human. It was adorable, really," she explained to Charlotte, who nodded with a smile, but looked more like she was going to be sick than anything else.

I felt mortified. Why did she always have to put me in the embarrassment spotlight?

"Seriously, Alice, what is wrong with you?" Edward said, and I silently thanked him.

"What? I'm just making conversation," she said innocently.

"Find another topic," he said.

"_I_ know. How about the serious Volturi ass we're going to kick?" Emmett enthused.

"Emmett," Esme said.

"Sorry. Serious Volturi… butt," he corrected his language.

The Volturi. I had forgotten about them. They were going to go after Charlotte at some point, and apparently these were pretty scary folks.

"They haven't decided yet," Alice said with blurry eyes, like she was searching for something in her mind.

"Why would they want to go after Charlotte, again?" I asked.

"Well, a few reasons," Jasper finally spoke up. "First off, she spied on them, which is already enough reason for them to want her killed. She also shot a paralyzing dart at one of them, and finally – she turned Edward human, effectively taking away his gift, which they wanted to eventually use."

There was silence for a moment, as everyone considered his words.

"Plus, they really fucking hate witches," Charlotte said with a smile. "Oh, I'm sorry, Esme," she smiled apologetically for swearing. "Old habits."

"That's alright, dear," Esme smiled back sincerely.

"So it's okay when _she_ does it," Emmett muttered under his breath. Esme pretended not to catch that.

"Speaking of my darts, though," Charlotte said, sipping her orange juice, "they were left in the woods."

Edward stopped eating at once. Everyone looked at Charlotte, who stopped eating as well as she caught up with their stares.

"What?" she asked confusedly.

"Are you being serious right now?" Edward asked.

"Yes, I am being very serious," she replied.

"What if somebody found them?" Carlisle asked and started walking towards us from the living room, reveling that he'd been listening on the conversation the whole time.

"Well… I never tried them on human tissue, but I suppose some of them would be lethal to humans. Especially the experimental ones," she said. "But what human in his right mind stick a dart he just found in the woods into another human?"

"Clearly, you've been isolated from society for much too long," Edward told her, maybe a bit harshly. There was something about the look he gave her, and the way he berated her, that was disturbing. It seemed as if he _knew_ her, better than I expected; as if they had their own shared secrets or something. I _hated_ that.

"Why haven't you mentioned this until now?" Alice asked, more softly.

"I just realized they were gone late last night, and I didn't want to… disturb anyone," she said, ducking her eyes to her plate.

_Does she mean Edward and me?_

"What do you mean, 'experimental ones'?" Jasper intervened.

"Some of those darts were of a new compound, one that I had yet to try… I really only brought them for a case of emergency, because it would either kill a vampire or enhance his powers – which would be an unwanted effect in the case of Nathaniel."

"Some witch you are," Rosalie muttered silently.

"Be nice, babe," Emmett said quietly in return.

I wasn't sure if Charlotte had heard that, because she didn't respond. But at least, thank heavens, not _everyone_ loved her.

"Well, fine, then. If anyone finds them and decides to use them, I guess it would be their own problem," Carlisle summed up, and everyone seemed to agree.

After some mindless chatter, and a couple of stolen looks Edward gave me and I pretended not to notice (still feeling guilty about my lying to him), everyone quieted down.

"So, Bells," Alice smiled. "We were thinking… you must be starving by now. So how about we take you hunting? You know, teach you the fine art?"

I hadn't even thought of that. Though now that I had, I realized I was famished. It occurred to me that this may had been the cause for my nearly attacking Edward before. The incredible thirst I felt for his blood.

"I guess," I said, and then regretted for sounding so ungrateful. "I mean, that's really nice of you." I tried to pull on a smile.

"Great. So we will all go this afternoon," she smiled back perkily.

I cleared my throat. "_We__all_?" I asked, a particular concern going through my mind.

"Of course! Well, obviously not Edward and Charlotte," she said.

_Yup.__ Exactly__ my__ concern.__ Edward__ and __Charlotte. __Staying __here. __Allll __alone. __And __she __wants __him. __Awesome_.

"Obviously," I breathed out with a casual smile, trying not to sound as worried as I actually was.

The rest of the morning went by with some more chatter, especially on Alice's side, as I kept to myself mostly. I didn't really feel like talking about this and that, but it did help to listen to the Cullens talk. It helped take my mind off things, everything that had happened. My parents. And kissing their killer.

Everyone was getting ready to leave, when a hand pulled on my hand and hijacked me into the kitchen. Edward was right. I really _did_ have bad instincts for a vampire, 'cause I did not see him coming.

My body crashed lightly onto Edward's, as his one hand circled my back and I placed both my hands on his chest to stop myself from falling when he pulled me.

"Hi," he said, smiling brilliantly.

"Hi," I stammered back, unsure what to say. I'd be blushing under his gaze if I were still human.

"So what's going on?" he asked, still smiling, but his eyes narrowing a bit.

"What do you mean?" I asked in reply, baffled by the question.

_Does__ he __know __that__ I'm __hiding__ something __from __him?__ How__ could__ he __know? __God, __I __hate __this_.

"I mean, why were you acting so strangely before?"

"I was?" I asked, trying to sound as normal as possible.

"Do you intend on answering all of my questions with questions?" he seemed amused, his lips wearing a big grin. I didn't miss on the fact that his lips were also incredibly close to mine, and his heartbeat was picking up.

"Possibly," I chuckled lightly. "When was I acting weird?"

"Right around the time Alice mentioned I would be staying home alone with Charlotte," he raised his eyebrows at me.

_So_ that's_ what __he__ was __referring __to. __Thank__ god.__ And__ also__ damn__it,__ he__ knows__ me__ way __too__ well_.

"No idea what you're talking about," I said innocently.

"Oh _really_?" he chuckled. His eyes stared down at mine with amusement, but also… something more lustful, as he let his hand trail down my spine. "Are you sure about that?" he whispered.

I nodded determinedly. "Extremely," I said. My voice betrayed me, despite my determination.

"Are you sure you weren't just a little… jealous?" he said with a low voice, as he stepped forward with each word until he had me with my back against the wall, and he was pressed against me.

_Oh__god_.

My eyes went blurry as I breathed in and his scent hit me again, like a tow truck. "Jealous?" I whispered, so my voice wouldn't break again. "No, I wasn't… wasn't _jealous_."

…_except__ that __I __was__ so__ totally__ jealous_.

"Because you know," he said, lowering his mouth onto my neck and planting small kisses there, kisses that drove me up the wall. "It's okay if you were."

I swallowed hard. How the hell could Edward stand to be so resilient and self controlling all the time? Thankfully, I could hear everyone busy with their own preparing upstairs, which served to distract me a little.

"It's actually quite… _hot_ when you're jealous," he whispered in my ear, after his trail of small, wet kisses led him there.

Then his lips neared mine, and I was gone again.

Our lips didn't quite press together, but more like brushed against one another as mouths opened to contain each other's hot breaths. He seemed insistent on breaking my defenses as he lifted one of my legs to wrap around his waist, and thrust himself gently against me. I shuddered, gasping quietly into his mouth.

That boy freaking _owned_ me. I didn't even care if his family could hear us. But the thirst was driving me crazy, and I couldn't allow this go any further.

_Damnit. __I __really __am __turning__in to __Edward_.

"Okay," I breathed, breaking from his kiss. "Maybe just a little bit jealous," I said, panting. "Can you please back away, like a feet or two? Please?" I asked him, because my will was starting to crumble.

My body practically ached at the loss of contact when he let me go and took a small step back.

"Huh," he said, smiling slightly.

"What?" I asked, trying to sort my breathing as I realized I didn't really need to do that, now that I was a vampire.

"I never thought _your_ side of things was this… difficult."

"How do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, I used to _have_ to put a stop to things so that I wouldn't hurt you, even though you made that _extremely_ difficult for me," he said, and I rolled my eyes. "But the only thing stopping _you_ was _me_. And I don't know how the hell I'm managing to stop myself from jumping you again right this instant." He looked gorgeous with his piercing green eyes, and his heaving chest, and his disheveled hair… god, the hair.

"Who's making it difficult now?" I panted, because I wanted nothing more than for him to jump me again right that instant.

"Sorry," he said, chuckling softly and running a hand through his hair. "I wasn't really planning on… doing that. I actually just wanted to say something, but then you looked so tempting with those cherry-red lips and your flowing long hair, and – wow, those jeans you're wearing are tight."

_Wow. __Edward __is __actually __into __me __almost __as __much __as __I'm __into __him__… __maybe __it's __the __teenage __hormones_.

"Super skinny jeans. Alice made me wear them," I chuckled.

"Ah, should have known," he chuckled as well.

"So what did you want to say?" I asked curiously.

He sighed quietly and stepped forward again, this time with no intention of attacking me. He just ran a gentle hand through my hair and said, "just that you have nothing to worry about. I would never betray you."

I bit my lip.

_I__ am __the __worst__ person __on__ the __face__ of__ this, __or__ any__ other, __planet_.

"Bella, come on! We're going!" I heard Alice call, before I got a chance to even react.

"Go, have fun, and don't be worried," Edward said, and kissed the top of my head before he let me go.

I smiled to him weakly before I left the kitchen, with extremely heavy weight on my heart.

* * *

_Edward's POV:_

I was left dazzled in the kitchen by the exquisiteness that is Bella. It was very much amusing to watch her as my behavior bewildered her. Perhaps I did come on a little strong – maybe the leg hitching thing was a bit much – but I couldn't help it; I loved not having to be careful around her.

I loved it so much, I forgot that the less careful you are, the harder you fall. I also forgot how deep I could fall when it came to Bella. Hence, my dazzlement.

I was still standing in the same spot in the kitchen when Charlotte found me, a few minutes later.

"Oh, there you are," she said. "What are you doing just standing there?"

"Just standing here," I said nonchalantly, only half present. I was still thinking about how Bella's lips felt.

"Riiight," she said, her eyebrows pulling together. "Would you sit with me in the living room?" She asked as she took a mug out of the cupboard and poured herself some coffee from the pot. "It's kind of lonely out there. Edward!"

"Yeah, sure," I said, finally snapping out of it.

"Good to have you back with us on earth," she chuckled as she left the kitchen, and I followed.

The moment we sat down on the two couches, I remembered that I had actually _wanted_ to be alone for a while with Charlotte. Badly. Urgently, even. There was a pressing matter at point.

"So…" she said.

"I need you to make me a new serum," I said bluntly, inconsiderate of what she wanted to talk about. As I mentioned, the matter was pressing. "One that would work on Bella, even though she's a newborn."

She exhaled sharply and smiled to herself. "I thought you might ask me that."

"And?" I pressed.

"And… I'll think about it," she said.

_What the hell?_

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. What was she trying to do?

"It means, Edward, that I'll think about it," she said. "And frankly, so should you."

"Are you being serious right now?" I asked agitatedly, realizing it was the second time that day I had asked her that.

"Yes," she sighed. "No. I mean… I'll do it, Edward. Of course I'll do everything I can to help you. But have you really thought this through?" she asked with intensity in her eyes.

"What is there to think?" I asked, genuinely confused by her reaction.

"Bella, for one. Has it even crossed your mind that maybe Bella doesn't want this as much as you do?"

I just shook my head, unsure what to say. No, it hasn't crossed my mind. I'd assumed that we both wanted the same thing – spending our lives together. But I haven't considered the possibility that Bella's wishes lie elsewhere.

"She's immortal now," Charlotte continued. "She gets to do anything she wants. Live forever. Be free. I'm not saying she doesn't want to be with you, but maybe she wants all those things too."

It occurred to me at that moment that Bella _had_ been acting strangely. I noticed that before, in my room and at the breakfast table. Maybe this was the reason. Maybe she wanted those things. And I had been a fool to even think of denying her of immortal life, super strength, super speed, _freedom_.

"But as a human she would have a chance at a normal life. Have children. Maybe she wants that, as well," I countered.

"It's her choice," Charlotte said with a shake of her head. "But you should probably sit down and _talk_ about how you both feel about this matter. Before she's irreparably human. And another thing – do you recall what I told you before I injected you with the serum?"

"You said a lot of things."

"I said it could kill you. You took that chance with your own life. But would you really take that chance with Bella's?" she raised an eyebrow.

She had a really, really good point. But still, I couldn't live with the fact that I was human and Bella wasn't. That she would eventually have to watch me die. That we'd be apart.

"Why are you saying all these things to me? What's it to you if I've thought this through or not?" I asked, irritated by the entire conversation.

"Because I'm your friend, Edward, and I want to help you," she said.

"If you want to help me, please make me a serum that would work on Bella and not kill her," I said. "Okay?"

She sighed. "Okay."


End file.
